Struggles of Raising Hybrids
by Hadronix
Summary: Following the Kaden/Corrin chapter of 'Asserting Dominance': Corrin (Lupus) is Kaden's (Ka-da's) mate, and she is bearing his kits. Alongside Velouria (Vella), Lupus deals with both her dragon and her human, in addition to Kitsune and human traditions.
1. Pregnancy, Cravings, and Habits

**Important!** This fic is set in the pre-made version of Fates established by **both** 'Corrin, of the Wolfskin' and 'Asserting Dominance'. I was going to add this onto 'Asserting Dominance', but I realize it wouldn't exactly fit the 'theme' of it... which was supposed to be Porn without Plot. This fic wasn't made with smut in mind, characters will be fleshed out once more, there will be more conflict, like in 'Corrin, of the Wolfskin'.

As with 'Asserting Dominance', do **not** take any of this information as being potentially canon in 'Corrin, of the Wolfskin'. The only information in here that is canon **must** match up with 'Corrin, of the Wolfskin', everything else is AU material.

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**A/N:** Hmm... I wonder what type of characters Hadronix over here likes to type about? Okay, seriously though, I think it's a let-down when game developers, movies, T.V. shows, or whatever other type of media goes to make characters that are: Furry, scaly, or shapeshifters, but all they really do is put animal looks on the character and maybe tweak their personality to sort of represent more of a wild animal. To me, if you're going that route, I want it to go all the way.

Is the character representing a canine? Lupine? Vulpine? Then the anatomy should line up more, females having multiple sets of teats. Lizards? Dragons? Milk-bearing breasts don't exist in these types of creatures, so neither should the character in that given form. If their 'human' form is furry or has scales, then it should also automatically line up with their real-life counterpart. *cough* Argonians and Khajiits from Elder Scrolls *cough*

So! With all that said. **If you do not like characters represented in such a fashion**, then this fic may not be for you. Ideologies such as mating, alphas, all the way down to how many offspring a shifter gives birth... even to how the offspring are birthed, all closely line up with their real-life counterpart. For example, Corrin/Lupus is half-dragon, so if she is pregnant in her dragon form, she'll have a clutch of eggs, she won't give birth to live young.

Yet, at the same time, these characters will not be 1-for-1 to their real life counterparts, there are still 'human' attributes, it's just that those attributes are few and far between.

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**Consort:** Well, long-time reviewer of 'Corrin, of the Wolfskin', here it is. This fic should satisfy both that 'odd question' and your curiosity of wanting to know what could have happened later on down the path of both Kaden/Corrin mating and Keaton/Corrin mating. So, while 'Asserting Dominance' was actually made to be a gift over on Ao3 to bLuewErewOlf25, this 'sequel' has been written for you... which means that once this is up, you'll receive your first 'gift-fic' over on Ao3.

And since this is separated from 'Asserting Dominance', expect there to be actual plot.

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**Canon Name = Nickname:** Oh yes.. this list again.

Corrin = Lupus. Velouria = Vella. Kaden = Ka-da. Selkie = Silky. Keaton = Keaty.

* * *

Lupus yawns as she stretches out her draconic form. While she does love the feeling of the sheer power in her shifted state, she has never done things like… well, sleep in this form. She's never actually 'lived' in this form. She wearily looks around the room, Vella is a few feet from her, sleeping in her human form. It will never cease to surprise Lupus just how **small** she is that form. Ka-da is curled up at the entrance of the cave, not quite asleep, but also not exactly awake… a sort of half-sleep.

Times are definitely peaceful, but… Lupus can't really speak for much outside of this cave… her den. She's been pretty much stuck here for a few weeks now, entirely depending on Ka-da to take care of her. At least, that would be what 'normally' happens in a hamlet. Vella, wanting to be as much as a 'sister' as possible, also helps Lupus out.

So, why is she technically stuck in this cave?

She's about halfway through her pregnancy… with Ka-da's kits. Lupus shifts around, trying to get at least slightly more comfortable. She groans shortly after, "Sister?" Vella stirs, "Do you need something?" She half-walk, half-crawls over to her…

None of them could exactly get a lot of sleep after a few weeks into Lupus's pregnancy. "Achy…" She whines. "Rubs? No scratching…"

Vella smiles, "Whatever you need." She places both of her furred palms onto Lupus's massive scaled stomach, though of course, these scales are far more delicate.

"Mmm…" She hums as Vella applies a generous amount of pressure, "So… good~" Her hind leg starts shaking. Vella giggles as she continues.

"Mate…" Ka-da calls out, "Food?" Yet, before Lupus could even vocalize her answer, her stomach quickly won that particular race, "I'll return soon." Rising from his curled up human form, Ka-da's Beaststone glows and he takes his Nine-tails form. He only needs to take two steps before he's at his top speed.

"Vella?" Lupus asks as he leaves, "Thank you… for sticking with me." The dragon rolls to her back… at least as far to her back as she can. The cave isn't the best, but… it's not like they can just move out and get a better one. Or… more accurately, Lupus can't just get out and move to a better one. Even walking is starting to take a toll on her. She needs frequent rest… and Vella, even in her Wolfskin form, can't simply carry her. Lupus can't shift back, since her human body can't support all of the kits she's bearing…

She'd lose all of them, as her human body literally cannot support the kits inside her now. Her Dragonstone does more than what the fantasy-style shapeshift might be considered. Shifting into a dragon isn't just a boost in power, defense, or whatever attribute she needs in a fight, no. Shifting into a dragon literally changes her entire body, inside and out, everything. From how she gets her body heat, what food she can stomach, all the way to how many offspring she can bear. As for how many offspring? Ka-da said she should get, at most… six?

She'll tough it out, as regardless how uncomfortable she gets, regardless of just how much pain she might get in her dragon form, she is **not** shifting back. She... she'll have a litter of kits… Ka-da's kits. Her dragon form can't smile, but if she could, she would. "Mate." Ka-da's already returned? Well, he **is** extremely fast. The smell of a fresh kill fills the cave. "There's plenty… eat." Lupus slowly rolls back over, then she lazily looks at the doe presented.

"I hate feeling this lazy…" Lupus groans.

"You're getting close, then." Ka-da chuckles as he drags the kill over to her.

"...I still can't believe I can even eat this raw now." Lupus lowers her head as the meat is now close enough to bite. "...still rather have some fruit." Vella slightly lifts the doe, easing Lupus in so she doesn't have to stretch as much. "Thanksh, shishter." She says with a half-mouth full of meat. However, she only gets a few bites in before she calls it good. "Oof…" Back to her side she goes. "I promise… when I'm able to… I'm going to start sprinting and playing again…"

"You still have several months before that." Ka-da takes a number of bites, ending up eating the most out of all of them. Fair enough, he's the only one really doing anything physically intense.

"You sure you don't want anymore?" Vella asks, taking a small portion for herself… before pulling out some bones for later.

"Mate, you need more than that." Ka-da adds, "You'll lose too much fat and risk harming the kits if you don't eat your portions."

She groans, "Ka-da… you don't get it. It's like, I'm hungry, but I'm not hungry. I'm sure that for any other day you got me a doe or deer or whatever, that I'd quickly eat my fill, but..." A pause, then she raises her head, "just thinking about eating this is making my stomach turn…" Vella raises her eyebrow and Ka-da tilts his vulpine head, "And yet, at the same time, I know **exactly** what I want to eat: a woodpecker, with its feathers, boiled in pickle juice and seasoned with Cayenne Pepper…" Well, it's a good thing Lupus did, in fact, ended up taking some of those lessons back in Shirasagi.

"I… don't even know where to get all that!" Ka-da exclaims, "Well, the woodpecker, yes, but…" He stops, groans, then turns around, "I'll return soon… hopefully." Once more, he is at his top speed within a few steps.

"Sister? What **is** 'pickle juice'?"

"Never had it, but I read about pickles. I dunno, it sounds good right now."

"...A human thing, surely." Vella sighs, "Oh, I actually feel bad for Ka-da now."

She slowly nods, "Obviously a human thing. I don't know how I know what I want. I normally **hate** seasonings, I've never had pickles or its juice, and birds aren't exactly my go-to snack. I'm not Silky on that, since I know she'll hop from trees and down birds all day if she could get away with it." A somber moment comes and passes. Ever since that day that Lupus chose to mate with Ka-da, Silky got to mate with Keaty. Vella has actually made a few visits, but they were short and quick.

Let's just say that Lupus isn't the only one developing a litter of offspring.

But, she knows Silky isn't suffering from these… 'cravings', since she is a pure-blooded Kitsune, and not a half-dragon half-human. Wait… human, human. "Vella?" Lupus suddenly asks, "When you get some free time, would you mind visiting my family?"

"Of course, but…" Vella starts off, "Why?"

"I want you to ask my mother about when she was pregnant. I mean, you and Ka-da are obviously more than capable of dealing with the 'dragon' side of my pregnancy, but it seems we're going to need some extra knowledge on my 'human' side of it."

Vella nods, "I understand. Well, when Ka-da gets back, I'll be quick."

"You still have it, right?"

Her Wolfskin sister flashes the enchanted badge that she, Ka-da, Keaty, and Silky all got once Nohr had been pushed back. It sports a highly noticeable combination of white, blue, red, and black. It is also laced with 'identity' enchantments. The purpose of these basically means that, "Don't worry about this Shifter. They have the favor of the Royal family." So, for example, if Ka-da was sprinting at max speed towards, also for example, Castle Shirasagi, then his badge would send out a 'message' of sorts, so that the guards don't start scrambling to defend against the 'intruder'. "I treasure it far too much to lose it, sister. Even if this 'badge' had absolutely no other purpose, even if it didn't work, I'd never lose it."

"And… while you're there… Could you also… check on Seta?" To be honest, Lupus's heart still aches for her, but there were obviously problems arising. Lupus made her decision when she wanted to know what mating felt like.

"_You did… what?"_ Seta tilted her head, caught somewhere between anger, sadness, betrayal, and so many other emotions that the scent from her emotions were blending together into one huge blob.

"_Mated with Ka-da."_ Lupus looked away, suddenly feeling horrible. It's… a human thing. "_Seta, you gotta understand, I go into heat. And… and…"_

"_You need a male for that."_ Even now, she still understood her, "_That's not what is hurting me here, Lupus. What hurts me is that you vanished for several days without telling me. And… and when you finally did return today, I find out that you're Ka-da's mate. You… you do understand how personal sex is, right? Humans don't lay themselves naked for someone else just to get their 'urge' taken care of, they do it because those two people love each other. They trust each other."_

Once more, Seta's wisdom seemingly came out of nowhere. "_I'm so sorry, Seta. I… could you please forgive me? I wasn't thinking like a human then."_

Seta's eyes went downcast as she thinks it over. "_I'm going need some time, Lupus. You… you really hurt me. I just wished you talked to me about it first."_ She looks back at her, "_And… if I do… then I'll gladly take this back."_ Lupus gaped as Seta plucked that vibrant red feather from her hair… the one she pulled out of Silky's mouth all that time ago. That… that was the most personal and treasured gift Lupus ever gave her. It showed how much she cared for Seta… and she just gave it back. "_Regardless of what I choose. I… I still want you to be happy, Lupus. I'll only wish you the best."_

"Sister?" Vella voice and her hands slightly pushing Lupus breaks her out of her thoughts, "You're crying."

"Seta…" She whimpers… Seta never did give an answer after that, and… and she had weeks before Lupus ended up getting pregnant in her dragon form, effectively locking her in this form. Because of that, Lupus still has that feather. "And… and when I can walk freely again. I… I want to visit her again. Seta, that is."

"Would you like for me to talk to her?"

She shakes her armored head, "No. I mean, if she starts the conversation, then yes, please don't ignore her, but if she doesn't, then don't push for one. She's probably only wanting to talk to me, anyway." Lupus lowers her head, "...wake me up when you can tell Ka-da is near and coming back. I… I need some time, too. I want some rest."

The last few sensations Lupus had before she fell asleep was Vella rubbing her head and saying, "Uh, sweet dreams… sister."

"Sister…" Lupus groans as Vella nudges her, "Ka-da is coming soon."

"...already? Just a few more minutes."

Vella giggles, "It's almost nightfall."

With that, her head immediately raises, taking note of how dark it is outside, "R-really? Oh… I feel so bad for him now. I… didn't realize it would end up taking him that long."

The first scent she got to know he was coming in was his smell… the second was actually his panting. "Mate…" He says as he enters the cave in his human form, "One… woodpecker. Still with… its feathers… boiled in… pickle juice… seasoned with C-Cayenne Pepper…" His face scrunches with disgust.

"Oh that's…" Vella gags.

"What? It smells wonderful!" Lupus exclaims as Ka-da places a bucket in front of her, containing that meal she's been craving. Head-first she goes as she eagerly downs the bird. "Delicious!" She notices that both Vella and Ka-da are now at the entrance of the cave, trying their best not to gag. Lupus drinks the remaining Cayenne Pepper-infused pickle juice, before letting out a burp. "Thank you~!"

A flash of light as Ka-da sprints towards the bucket, grabs the handle with his teeth and places it outside. He then quickly runs back in. Another flash of light as Vella grabs the bucket and throws it as far as her Wolfskin strength would allow… and that meant it traveled until Lupus couldn't even see it. "I'm so glad the bitches never had those 'cravings'." Vella scoffed.

"Aw, come on. You two are exaggerating it." Lupus sighs as she lies her head back down.

With the apparent 'foul scent' gone, Ka-da takes to his original position… in front of the cave. He lies down and curls back up. At least his breathing has evened out by now. Vella, too is back in the cave… but she is also notably several feet away from Lupus. "I'm afraid we aren't, sister." She hears the Wolfskin sigh as she lies back down. "Both your meal and your breath are foul. It literally sickens up to be near either of them."

"What?" Lupus giggles, not even slightly offended, "I'm sure I'll look back at this day and ask myself, 'What the heck was I thinking, wanting to eat something like that?!'"

That got the anticipated response, as Vella… and even Ka-da started laughing. "So… a few more weeks, then?" Vella states more than asks.

"Yep." Ka-da simply replies.

"Hey, Vella… don't forget to visit my family."

"I would have already, but I also didn't expect your meal to take so long."

"Oh… right. Uh, sorry about that, Ka-da. I hope you aren't too worn out."

He scoffs, "If I got exhausted from that, I'd be an awful alpha." He raises his head for a moment and stares her down with an intensity that causes her to shiver, "It was more trouble getting the ingredients together… you weren't there to see some of the looks I got. I ended up just getting them separate and had someone else cook it. Even then… even the humans seemed as if they were going to vomit from the smell." A pause, "Mate, why do you want Vella to go to your family?"

"Advice," Vella answers, "She wants to get some information on the more 'human' side of her pregnancy… like, you know, the 'craving' she had."

"Ah…" Ka-da hums, "Alright, feel free." He gives Vella permission…

Vella is still pure-blooded Wolfskin, which means she probably would have ended up staying here if Ka-da denied the request. Ka-da has proven himself to be a capable alpha, since sometime after claiming Lupus as his mate, but before she actually got pregnant, Lupus and Ka-da were finally able to have that rough and hard playfight… with both of them being at their peaks. No wounds, no previous exhaustion.

"Sister? You're breathing heavily."

"Oh, it's just…" Lupus rolls as far to her back as she can, "Just remembering that last playfight we had, Ka-da." She shivers, "We spent like… hours wearing each other down, and… and at the end. He pinned me down like the first time and bred me." The smell of her sex filled the cave… completely shameless. "I couldn't walk for **days**. My legs were already at their limit… but his tails still held me up." A pause, "How difficult is it, Ka-da, to control each of those tails separately?"

"It isn't easy," He starts, "When I was still only capable of the original Kitsune form, controlling that one tail was easy enough, but after I was strong enough to both enter and sustain the Nine-tails form? It took me months before I could reliably use even three of them. It was honestly more of a hassle for years. I obviously can't speak for a Wolfsegger, but I'm confident it takes far more skill to master Nine-tails than Wolfsegger."

Vella sniffs, "I don't doubt you, actually. But, Wolfsegger grants far more strength, speed, and stamina compared to how much a Nine-tails has to a Kitsune."

"So… it's basically, Wolfsegger is immediately far more powerful, but Nine-tails can be much better… after the shifter learns to control all of the Nine-tails', uh, nine tails?" Lupus asked.

"That's about right." Ka-da agrees, "Trust me when I say, a lot of Kitsunes stick with their original forms, even if they are strong enough to assume Nine-tails. All stay in the previous form for a single reason: It takes too much time and energy to control the extra eight tails, it simply becomes a hindrance."

"...Then why did you push yourself?" Lupus asks.

"I needed to be better." He admits, "I wanted to be stronger. I wanted to be the next alpha. However, there were **many** other males that surpassed me in the Kitsune form. There were many older, stronger males that have fought in that form for many years longer than me. As you know by now, simply being one of the offspring of the alpha means nothing. If I wanted to be the alpha, I would have to fight for it." He pauses, "That's why I pushed myself. I realized the only way to get to the top was to master Nine-tails, otherwise I'd never reach the top. I was too young to surpass all of the experienced Kitsunes." He raises his head, "Which brings me to one of the **only** exceptions in shifter rules."

"And that is?" Lupus is completely invested.

"As I said, mastering the Nine-tails takes a lot of extra energy and time… if a Kitsune wants to take that chance, they'd have to start hunting their own food, they'd have to separate themselves from the hamlet. Because during that time of attempting to learn, they become more of a hindrance than a benefit. It was one of the few times where a Kitsune could directly deny the alpha's orders. There are two conditions on which the Kitsune can return. One is that they master the Nine-tails form. The second is that they give up… but they are forbidden from trying again. Well more accurately, if they try again, then they are removed from the hamlet permanently, even if they master it."

"And that's it?"

He nods, "They are treated as part of an opposing hamlet. If they want back in, they'd have to fight the entire hamlet. Even they are the strongest Nine-tails to exist, they would be overwhelmed by numbers."

"...They are killed?"

And now he shakes his head, "No. We understand that mastering the Nine-tails takes tremendous will. Instead they are beaten until submission, to which they are forced out. We don't kill them, we encourage them to form their own hamlet."

"That… is certainly the most complicated thing I ever heard." Vella speaks up, "There are no such rules with so many exceptions in Wolfskin packs." Vella turns her head as a very audible sound comes from Lupus's direction… her sister seems to have fallen asleep.

Ka-da sighs, then lies his head back down, "We all should know… only the strongest survive, but sometimes… sometimes we have to change our ways to adapt. We have to forget old traditions to keep making it to the next generation. If we never changed our ways, we would be killed off." A silence blankets the area.

"...Poachers." Vella scoffs.

"Yes, they're the main reason why we change. Poachers are constantly finding new ways to overcome hamlets and packs… so we need to find new ways to counter them." Ka-da stretches his body before yawning. "I'm going to rest. Take the first watch, Vella." He walks deeper into the cave.

"Of course, alpha." Vella immediately complies as she walks to the entrance, taking a similar position as Ka-da did… lying down, curling up, and going into that half-sleep state… not quite asleep, not quite awake. Her Beaststone is at the ready. "...Good night." She mutters as she stares into the night.

Tomorrow she has to visit Lupus's family.

* * *

**A/N:** Honestly, I have enough ideas to make two entirely separate fics… one that follows the Kaden/Corrin chapter of 'Asserting Dominance' and one that follows Keaton/Corrin chapter of 'Asserting Dominance'...

Hey, it's like I'm making my own 'Birthright' and 'Conquest'!

Once more, I'd like to extend thanks to **bLuewErewOlf25** for sparking the idea for those smut scenes in 'Asserting Dominance', which in turn sets the foundation for these two new fics. Another set of thanks to **Consort** for all of those reviews and that 'odd question', which will be used to flesh out these two new fics. You're both wonderful users that have supplied with me with a number of ideas. I can't express how grateful I am… and I can't count the number of times your questions and thoughts in your reviews have changed how 'Corrin, of the Wolfskin' flows.

Now, with all of the thanks and gratefulness said… be prepared for more weirdness. I mean… just look that scene with Lupus asking for a 'woodpecker that still has its feathers, boiled in pickle juice, and seasoned with Cayenne Pepper'. Expect themes similar to 'Corrin, of the Wolfskin' in terms of potential humor, awkwardness, and even learning curves…

However, those learning curves are applying more to the clutch of offspring Lupus will end up having. As a bit of foresight… not all of those offspring are going to be born with the mentality of 'shifter' like Kaden has. Some will act more human, like Lupus's blood-family. Some will act more like Lupus herself, caught somewhere between human and shifter. The remainder will act more like Kaden, being completely bestial.


	2. The Sayings Humans Call 'Idiots'

**A/N:** I hope I'm getting these pregnancy details right. That's the only thing I'm not so certain on…

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**Nicknames:** Corrin = Lupus. Velouria = Vella. Kaden = Ka-da. Sakura = Saku. Hinoka = Hina.

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**The Inquisitor (Guest): **In a good way, I hope?

* * *

**Consort:** Welcome to yet another fic involving Lupus! I'm really enjoying this character sooo much, obviously. It's because of this intense love for her is why ideas are flowing so smoothly. I **want** to write more on her. Yep, you were one of the top two, which I'm considering equal on terms of contribution. While yes, bLuewErewOlf25 over on Ao3 supplied more on the… 'steamy' side of things, it still ended up in giving me a number of ideas. So again, thank you. Because, it's like I stated over on… 'Confined', I think. All it could take is one sentence and I can turn that small spark of an idea into a whole story… or at least a bit of lore.

I… see. Well, I hope that Lupus's 'craving' provided some humor, because she hasn't given birth yet, so there's gonna be a few more of those.

* * *

Lupus awoken to a pain in her stomach, the first thing she did before she could even fully awake was start coughing. "**Mate**?" Ka-da's voice comes out so clear… but so loud. "**What's wrong?**"

"St-stop…" She cries out, "Yelling, pl-please…!" Shortly after, she ends up vomiting.

Her mate's eyes shine with concern… and uncertainty. Whatever happening to her must not be normal in Kitsune standards… So, what she's feeling must be another human thing. "Vella!" Ka-da whispers… at least, Lupus thinks he's whispering, why is everything so loud? "I…" he takes a breath, instantly calming himself, "Stay here, I'm going to her family."

Vella nods, if a bit panicked herself, "I'll do what I can for my sister." But, if the alpha is calm, then that fact calms her down, too.

"I'll return soon…" At least he has a specific destination this time. Ka-da's Beaststone glows as he assumes his Nine-tails form once more, and within that single bound, he's at his top speed.

"Some water, sister?" Vella gently asks, petting her armored head.

"Just… sick. Don't feel too hungry or thirsty." Lupus shakes her head, but even that causes the bile to rise up again.

* * *

The wind whipped by Kaden at an alarming rate. If his Nine-tails form wasn't so suited for the speed he could run, then the wind alone would yank on his fur… and running into anything could be fatal. But, Kitsunes have slowly perfected themselves in speed, agility and durability. They have some of the fastest reflexes compared to anything else, and even if something unexpected happens and they do end up colliding with something along the way, their reinforced skin and fur will protect from the worst, and most Kitsunes would have recovered and resumed running by the time they landed, anyway…

Kaden can recover before he even lands on the ground.

He's sprinting so fast, that he is leaving behind a trail of downed grass from simply the wind he's making. His paws are slamming into the ground, leaving behind small indents… deeper than what he would make even in just dirt.

It hasn't even been ten minutes before he sprinted the several dozen mile gap between Shirasagi and his den. If he were any other animal, then he'd have to slow down to keep himself from hitting anyone. But, he isn't just any animal, he's a Kitsune who has mastered the Nine-tails form, so he doesn't slow down. With a single bound and pure momentum, he lands on the complete vertical stone wall surrounding the city and seems to defy logic as his speed allows him to sprint right up the wall. Once he's on top, he hits his top speed again and leaps, landing on a building that had to have been at least several dozen yards away. Thankfully, due to how the Kitsunes changed, the building suffered no damage… almost as if a simple leaf landed on the roof.

Without missing a beat, he leaps to another roof, then another and… "Kaden?" Who… wait. Pegasus, human… spicy? "Gods, what's wrong?" Hina.

"My mate… Corrin, Lupus, whoever you refer to her by,"

"Is she okay?!" The mere mention of her blood-sister's name seems to have caused her to be as worried as he.

"It's her pregnancy… she's experiencing human symptoms… I don't what to do."

She flinches and frowns, "I… let's get to my mother." Kaden resumes running whilst Hina follows with her Pegasus… unfortunately she might have thought Lupus was fast… But Kaden is on a whole other level. Her Pegasus has absolutely nothing on him, as he continues to create a larger gap between them without issue.

Kaden sniffs the air as he is near the castle. He might not be familiar with each of the siblings scents, but he can at least figure it out… somewhat. Focusing on the sweet scent, he charges into the castle… his badge glew, easing the guards that would otherwise attempt to attack. Then, in another show of defying logic, his speed and agility allowed him to run on the **walls**. Sprint, jump, sprint, jump, sniff, within a minute he arrives at the door with the sweet smell… he **thinks** that one belongs to the Queen. Without wasting a single step, he manages to come to a complete halt. Shifting back, he opens the door, "Queen Mik…"

He is in the clinic. "K-K-Kaden?" Oh… not Mikoto… Saku, Lupus's little sister. "Gods y-y-y-y-y-you sc-sc-scared me…" She is taking deep breaths.

"Where's your mother, I need advice." He rounds on her…

Causing the young, shy Saku to recoil, her face lighting up an intense red, "M-M-M-Mother is i-i-in a m-m-m-meeting."

"If it isn't one human thing, it's another…" He huffs, "Where's the meeting room?"

"Wh-what!? You can't j-j-just…"

"Saku, Lupus is sick, it has something to do with her being pregnant. She's experiencing something Kitsunes don't. She. Needs. Help." His voice comes out extremely desperate.

"I'm back, Lady Sakura~!" Hana nearly sings.

"O-o-o-oh good. H-H-Hana? Pl-pl-please show K-K-K-Kaden the m-m-m-meeting r-r-r-r-r-room. C-C-C-C-Corrin needs h-h-h-help."

"Lady Corrin needs help?! Then why…"

Kaden groans. See, this is one of the reasons why humans and Kitsunes or Wolfskin **can't** live together. It's always why, why, why! They always need all of the how, who, what, when, where, and whys. "Because she's pregnant, and I don't know how to treat the human things that come with it." He growls… by accident.

And of course, instead of immediately acting, Hana instead reacts to his growl first, glaring for a few seconds before actually responding, "Alright, let's go." She darts out.

Kaden sighs at her relative slowness as he lightly jogs, still managing to outrun her. "I'm stressed, alright? Sorry."

"No, I get it." She replies, "I'd do the same thing if Lady Sakura were in a similar situation… actually no. I'd be even more aggressive. She's more than my liege, Kaden. She's my best friend." She turns and smiles for a moment, before focusing on the trip. "Alright, it'll be the next door to the left…" She clears her throat. "Queen Mikoto?" Hana starts off as she knocks on the door. "I have a report that demands immediate attention!"

Kaden noted that the room went quiet, and soon enough, the door open. "Yes, Hana?"

The Samurai looks at Kaden, "Your daughter is going through pregnancy things… stuff Kitsunes don't experience, and I don't know what to do."

She looks back inside, "Yukimaru? I hate to push this meeting on you, but…" A pause, "Thank you." Mikoto steps outside and starts walking, "What is she experiencing?"

"Coughing, vomiting, maybe more, I left Vella to watch over her."

She takes a breath, "That would be 'morning sickness', Kaden." She smiles, "It'll go away, at the very latest, by midday."

"...oh." He looks away for a moment, "Well, since I'm here… is there anything else I need to know? I've uh… already had to deal with a 'craving'."

She laughs, "Oh yes… be prepared to hear some very strange requests for food."

"Um, if you don't mind, Queen Mikoto, I'd like to return to my liege."

"Oh, of course." She smiles as the Samurai bows and takes her leave. "Just for curiosity, what did my daughter ask for?"

Well, now that Kaden knows the threat to his mate isn't critical, he manages to relax and not get as agitated with the questions. "A woodpecker with its feathers still on, boiled in pickle juice, and seasoned with Cayenne Pepper."

Another giggle, "Hm… I remember when I was carrying Hinoka in me, that I asked for noodles, but instead of the traditional pasta-based noodles, I wanted them made out of Jalapeno peppers." She touches her lip with a finger, "I swear, I can still feel the burn from that meal."

"Yeah… the vixens don't have that. Is there anything else I need to know?"

"Oh, right. Let's see… do your pregnant females deal with mood swings?"

"They get agitated easily, and become highly aggressive when the kits are born." He nods.

"There's more than that. Be prepared for her to suddenly become sad, followed by extreme happiness, or maybe anger. The smallest things can set her off. Again using me for reference, I remember when my husband was assisting me into getting in bed, since I was close to birthing to Takumi, but he put my sleeping gown on the table next to the one I usually leave it on. Oh, I threw a horrible fit, I lectured him for at least fifteen minutes… then all the sudden, in the middle of one of my sentences, the anger just left, and I just felt… happy."

"Well…"

"Frequent trips to the toilet is another."

"The vixens actually have that."

"Oh, okay then…" She hums, "How about her breasts, are they extremely sensitive?"

He shakes his head, "She's in her dragon form, she doesn't have them."

She tilts her head, "Oh, she's… okay like that? That must be taking a toll on her."

"No choice, she has to. Whichever form they get pregnant in, they have to stay in that form. Their bodies change with the use of a Beaststone, but things like food or children won't, and since her dragon form is so much larger than her human, the offspring would... well, be too large for her…" He trails off.

She shivers, and actually looks kind of sick from that. "Very well. I'm assuming she's experiencing extreme lethargy?"

"She can rarely even find the strength to stand. She's either on her side or on her back."

"Ah, good. Make sure she doesn't sleep on her stomach. Well, since she's not moving much, she doesn't have much in terms of back pain?" He shakes his head, "Okay, then that's all of the more common symptoms. Is there anything else you need?"

"No… that's all. Uh, thank you." He too, gives her a short bow… only because that's what Hana did.

"Anytime, Kaden. Do take good care of my daughter." A short pause, and right as when he was about to leave, "Oh! When are they due? I'd love to see them!"

He hesitates, "She'll give birth in a few weeks, but it'll be over four months before you can visit."

She frowns, "So, I can't hold them when they're infants? I suppose I understand, I'm assuming they are far more delicate than…"

"It's not that. I did say earlier that they… we will get extremely aggressive over our kits. If you aren't living in the den now, stay out. The need to protect our young overcomes even familial bonds. Going to our den before we're ready will incite an attack and we won't hesitate to kill."

"Oh? I… see. My apologizes, I didn't think that through. I should have assumed as much. Well, I won't keep you any longer. Have a good day, Kaden."

"You too, Queen." With that, he dashes back off…

* * *

"Sister?!" Vella asked after Lupus vomited for the third time in an hour. Her heart rate is slowing down. Her breathing is getting shallower, and Vella is starting to panic. "Please… keep the water in."

"Vella…" Lupus wheezes, if she couldn't stand before, then she certainly couldn't stand now, as weak as she is. "Oof." And right back down she falls. "Sister… I'm scared."

"Sister, sister, sister, sister…" She whines, whilst petting Lupus's head, that same bowl of water in hand. "I need to think of something… something human-related." Her eyes dart from one spot to another.

Lupus huffs, vomits for the fourth time… then takes a deep breath. "I… guess… I ate something bad?" Another deep breath, "I'm… not feeling any worse… but not any better yet."

"...huh?" Vella tilts her head, seemingly stunned that her sister is… just better. "Maybe that 'craving' caused it?" Vella and Ka-da have been dealing with her 'cravings' for a number of days now. Some of them are more 'normal', the best example of that was the day she asked for a single rat, alive. Then… then there was yesterday.

A thin slice of fish meat, a thick slab of beef, no less than five kinds of thinly sliced cheese, which were evenly separated among the fish and beef. Instead of bread, she asked for bird feathers on top and bear hide on the bottom… and the last ingredient?

Drenched in Silky's saliva. The whole thing.

Now that Vella thinks about it, it's no wonder Lupus ended up getting sick… that might explain why even her vomit smells so sweet.

Another deep breath and Lupus's breathing is back to normal, if a tad bit too light. "Uh, water?" She sheepishly asks.

"Oh, right." Vella offers the bowl, to which Lupus eagerly laps up. "...You're getting close, sister." A smile.

"Ka-da says I could have up to six… but it feels like there's so much more. Would six pups or kits really make me this… big?" If Lupus were to get any larger, she'd resemble a giant scaled ball with legs, a tail, and a neck and head.

"I… agree. But, I've also never seen a dragon pregnant. Maybe they're supposed to get this big?" Vella pokes at her stomach, then places a hand on it, "Well… I would think you would feel movement by now."

"...sister?" Lupus looks past the entrance of the den, "Several handfuls of grass, about two bowls of water, and…" Lupus pauses.

"Oh dear… what is going to be the stomach-killing ingredient this time?"

"...bear testicles."

"Oh. Well, it could be worse." Vella shrugs it off. "Um, you will be okay alone for a while, right?"

"Shouldn't take you too long, right? If it takes less than like, twenty minutes, I'll be fine." Lupus rolls to her side. "Uh… alright… two cravings, then. A plate of pasta, but instead of noodles, I want them made entirely out of Jalapenos… the sauce will be bird's blood."

"Yep, there it is. Your kits are getting you sick, sister." Vella sighs, "I'll return with the grass, water, and bear testicles first. I'll get the rest after Ka-da comes back." Lupus lazily growls in agreement, before lying her head down. "And… I'll guess I need to wake you up…" A snore follows, "after I get back." Another sigh, "Have a good rest, sister."

* * *

Kaden is taking huge breaths as he returns from Shirasagi, a small bag is tightly wrapped around his body, containing a number of things that Mikoto said should 'smooth things out'. Thankfully, she also had the mind to include a list of instruction on **how** exactly to use these things. As with his sprint to the Castle, his trip back lasts less than ten minutes.

It's well past midday, so he's hoping Mikoto's right, and that his mate should be completely fine by now.

He then suddenly picks up a scent in the air… Vella? Out here? The fact that she's out and about actually brings him a peace of mind. He knows she would **never** leave his mate alone if she wasn't stable. So, what is she… grabbing handfuls of grass. The sight alone is absurd, a Wolfskin, who rarely eats anything but raw meat… is getting grass. There's only one logical conclusion.

His mate has another 'craving'.

Her ears twitch and she looks up, "Oh, hello Ka-da." She smiles. "Sister's doing better, I think it just had to do with her last 'craving', since she started feeling better after she vomited up all of that last meal."

"Really?" Kaden asks as he approaches her, "Her mother told me that it is 'morning sickness', something pregnant humans deal with. It goes away by midday."

A pause, "...huh. Well, now that you mention it, the sun was past its peak by the time she started getting better."

Despite it all, he finds himself asking, "What's her 'craving' this time?"

"...She's got two, actually." Vella starts off, "The first one is several handfuls of grass, two bowl of water, and a pair of bear testicles."

"Sounds pretty reasonable. What's the second?"

"She wants pasta…" Vella trails off with a smile on her face.

"That can't be it."

"But instead of traditional noodles, she wants it made entirely out of 'Jalapeno peppers', and…" Kaden interrupts her by chuckling. "What?"

"I'll tell you when we're all together."

Vella rolls her eyes, "Anyway, and instead of the normal tomato sauce, she wants it covered in bird's blood."

"Well… it could be worse." He eventually ends up saying, before shaking his head in partial amusement.

"What's in the bag?"

"Hm? Oh, Mikoto told me they are things that will help out with any human issues my mate might have." He lowers himself, "I'm going back to the den. I'll hunt something for us later." Without waiting for a reply, he sprints off the remaining distance.

* * *

Lupus feels something nudging her side. Once she opens her eyes and looks around, Ka-da is next to her. "Oh, hello Ka-da." She lazily states, "I'm feeling a lot better." For emphasis, Lupus slowly gets up, showing off that she can stand now.

"Down." He states, to which she quickly complies. "Your mother told me you had 'morning sickness', something that goes away by midday. Also, she sent some supplies back with me to help out with a number of other human pregnancy things, alongside instructions on how to use them."

A soft growl, "How were they?"

Being blunt, he answers, "Hina took the news of you being sick terribly and I scared Saku, but other than that, she's fine. Hana's well. Mikoto was worried until I explained what was going on, then… she informed me of some human things, as well as giving examples of her own…."

"I'm back." Vella needlessly announced her presence. "One large bowl of a few handfuls of grass, two bowls of water… and two bear testicles."

"Ooo…" Lupus looks far more interested in that meal than she has any right to be. "Gimme, gimme, gimme!" The second Vella put that bowl down was the same second Lupus dug into the food… But, even by beast-shifter standards… can 'that' even be considered food? "Oof, n…" She says through mouthfuls of wet grass, "Anyfing elf?"

"Think I found out why Hina smells spicy." Kad-da starts.

"And?" Vella was the first to ask, since Lupus was chowing down on a combination of wet grass and a single bear testicle.

He chuckles, "Because when Mikoto was bearing Hina, one of her 'cravings' involved asking for…" He clears his throat and raises his eyebrow at his mate, "Pasta, but instead of it being noodle-based, she wanted made entirely out of Jalapeno peppers."

Lupus ends up gagging on some grass for a moment, "R-Really?" She slurps down some water, "Humans got a saying for that… uh… 'the bird's two feathers'?"

"Humans say that?" Vella asks.

"Something like that… they call them 'idiots'." If she could shrug her shoulders, she could, "Learned about it in those classes mother had me take."

"So… there are more?"

Lupus nods, "Uh… 'curiosity skinned the cat', _'fists speak louder than words', 'violence makes the heart grow fonder', 'a punch is worth a thousand words', 'birds of a feather fight together', 'thwack unto others as you would have them thwack unto you'!_"

"Humans are weird…" Vella concludes.

"I've been to towns and cities many times… but I never heard any of those, " Ka-da adds.

"Well… apparently Royals need a higher education, so that they can show off their wasted time and money." A pause, then her stomach grumbles, "...Can I have that Jalapeno pasta now?"

Ka-da sighs, "I'll get it." Vella actually ends up saying, before looking at the alpha.

"She's my mate, and…"

"You've been running all day, probably literally. Let me do something." Vella persists, "You… you don't **have** to do everything."

"Actually… Ka-da?" Lupus starts, "I'd like it if you lied down by me for a while."

Seemingly pressured between the two females, he gives in with a nod, "Well… I am the one who said I'm going to change how traditions work. So… go ahead, Vella."

"Oh thank you! I've been **dying** to get some real exercise in!" Vella cheers, "I'll return!" Once outside the den, she shifts and starts running.

Taking that moment, Ka-da also shifts, before lying next to Lupus, some of his tails resting on her. "Um…" She starts, "I don't think I have… well. Y'know, ugh… I dunno how to say this right."

"Mate?"

"I mean, I know I have offspring in me, but I haven't felt any real movement in me. I should have by now, right? It worries me."

Ka-da hums. "Perhaps… perhaps your dragon form gives birth like a snake does?"

"And that is?"

"Eggs, they aren't the hard ones like the ones humans use, but it's… more like that leather armor."

"...huh. I guess that makes sense. I can't feel movement, because there's an egg shell between them and my skin." She sighs, "I'm glad you knew that. I feel a lot better."

"Not a problem." He replies as he stretches with a yawn. "Uh, sleep well?"

"Wake me when sister returns…"

"Alright." She was already fast asleep by the time he answered, "...and you worry me, with how fast and deeply you fall asleep." He sighs, "Or who knows, maybe that's a human thing, too." With his body fur brushing up against her, Lupus's tail eventually makes its way to be in front of him, almost as if she's the one protecting him.

* * *

**A/N:** Oh… so many little fun details, but part of me just wants to get to all of those adorable Kanas!

...I'm so treating that scene where Mikoto had that Jalapeno pasta as the 'canon' explanation on why Hinoka smells spicy. So, with that in mind… one of those Kanas is gonna smell spicy, too! One is going to smell really sweet, thanks to that one meal covered in Selkie's saliva.

And lastly, those idioms… I'm sure that any lesson Lupus learned while in Shirasagi wouldn't stick to well. Also, there's a reason that after 'curiosity skinned the cat', the rest are _italicized_, I actually pulled that from a game that I played. It came from a wonderfully written Visual Novel/Strategy turn-based combat game, to which the ratio of said genre is roughly 80%/20%, called 'Utawarerumono: Mask of Truth', a direct sequel for 'Utawarerumono: Mask of Deception'. The character's name is Atuy.

Anyway, I might be able to get one more chapter with Lupus still being pregnant before I can actually get those Kanas in… er, out that is.


	3. The Burden of a Half-Dozen Eggs

**A/N:** Alternate title: Corrin carried Ka-da's Kitsune kits, can Corrin call a Kitsune kit Kana?

And oh… I was having quite the joyride typing up the first scene in this chapter! May the funnies be with you all for it...

* * *

**Canon name = Nickname:** Corrin = Lupus. Kaden = Ka-da. Velouria = Vella. Hinoka = Hina. Sakura = Saku. Ryoma = Red.

* * *

**Consort:** I dunno, sounds like one of the best treasure hunts ever… until you get to the bear testicles. Kinda makes me wonder… I never did specify if that bear was killed. Maybe Vella pounced on him in her Wolfskin form, then proceeded to rip his balls off, and now there's a bear out there without any balls. *shivers*

Oh… them dragon eggs… *starts chanting* Kana! Kana! Kana! Kana! Kana! Kana!

Yeah… but Vella and Ka-da still have to deal with the smell. Even if the Kitsune-spit infused meal smells really sweet, according to Vella. Also makes me wonder what they did to clean it up… I doubt they would leave it there, especially with offspring on the way.

Things are running… 'Silky' smooth! Huh… maybe I should have had Ka-da get a small update while he was over there. Well, there's always next time. I can easily imagine Silky agreeing to salivating that much… only if she got a whole plate of peaches.

* * *

Lupus groans as she rolls over, even if she's never given birth before, she has a very distinct feeling she's almost there. While she is extremely happy to give birth to Ka-da's kits… or dragonlings, or whatever comes out of her. She'll also be truly relieved when she can move again. She swears, anymore bulging and she'll be a ball. It's been a 'few weeks' since Ka-da said it should be a 'few weeks' before she gives birth.

Well, she doesn't know about giving birth, but what she does know is to extract some more accurate information out of him. She's already asked Vella a few times to hold Ka-da down until he says more, but…

Even Vella seems to have her limits.

So, instead all Lupus can do is imagine what she'd do to Ka-da to get him to talk. Right now, the only plausible thing she can think of is to roll onto him… but she doesn't want to risk hurting the offspring. Another groan with a slight shift. "How about now…?" Lupus sounds more like an immature child, rather than a half-dragon close to giving birth. "C'mon, it **hurts**! Kaaa-daa!"

"The eggs will come out when they're ready, mate." He repeats.

"I'm gonna make something come out of **you** if you don't come over here and comfort me!"

He sighs, "You'll just attempt to pin me to the ground again."

"No, I won't!"

"Sister… you are still a terrible liar." Vella half-chuckles, half sighs. "There's a reason why I'm several inches further than usual."

"Ugh…" A pause, "Vellaaa… Why didn't you tell me it was going to end this way?"

"Uh… excuse me? 'End this way'?" Vella glares, "Sister, you are **not** dying."

"Anymore pressure and I'm gonna pop like one of those floaty things the humans use in parties." Lupus continues to complain, "It feels like if I roll the wrong way, then I'm gonna split open."

"Then stay still." She counters.

"But my legs are so sore! My side is getting numb… and all I ever see is pebbles and dirt! At least roll me over so I can look at a different set of pebbles and dirt!"

"It'll harm the offspring if you make such a huge change in your position, mate."

"You know what…?"

"'I'm gonna harm you if you keep it up?'." Vella cuts her off. "Did I guess it right?"

"...Yes." She slowly nods. "I'm sooorry! I've just been so cranky and upset and mean, but you gotta understand that I feel like complete crap right now!" And in comes the sadness.

"We forgive you, sister." Honestly, to Vella and Ka-da, this is becoming clock-work. Sure, the emotions don't follow a pattern, but the way they deal with them is the same.

Another short silence, "Siiiisterrrr!" Lupus cries out. "Rub meeee!"

"As long as it isn't near your womb, then…"

"But that's where it's really sore!" She groans again. "Can these kits or dragonlings or babies or eggs or whatever just get out of me!?"

"Complaining about it won't speed up the process, mate."

"'I'm gonna give you something to complain about!'." Vella guesses.

"Stop doing that!" Lupus rounds her head at Vella. "I can talk perfectly fine!"

"Did you know that the bitches' cores will start contracting when it's about time?" Vella deftly evades inciting more irritation.

"...really?" As expected, her curiosity gets the better of her.

"...Yep."

With that incredibly useful tidbit of information, Lupus lies her head down, occupying herself with that image. Vella rolls her eyes and sighs, forever grateful this doesn't happen to pure-blooded Wolfskin.

…

Then she shivers about how many of her sister's offspring will be female. Oh… she already feels sorry for whichever male claims them.

Unfortunately, with a pregnant Lupus still quite awake, it means that silence rarely lasts long… "Vellaaa. I gotta go pee!"

* * *

Lupus has went relatively silent for the past several hours, allowing Vella and Ka-da their first true reprieve in days. Somehow, the worst parts of a vixen being pregnant and a human being pregnant have molded into one large clump of complaints and problems.

…

"Um…" Lupus hummed, feeling a rather noticeable shift inside her. "I feel something moving… a lot of somethings." Vella's ears perk up, perhaps noticing the distinct lack of exaggerated complaining.

And if she didn't know any better, she could have sworn Ka-da breathed a sigh of relief, muttering something about 'human pregnancies', before walking over to her. "Spread your hind legs, mate."

"I'm not exaggerating this time… I really can't." She groans as that pressure builds up.

"Vella." He simply states, to which the Wolfskin nods, then proceeds to hold her sister's leg up.

"Alright, what's next?" Lupus asks.

"Uh… push?" Ka-da casually shrugs.

"You don't know!?"

"Never attended a female giving birth." Ka-da admits.

"Same." Vella nods.

"Maybe you should have g**one**…!" Lupus's voice pitches up for a half-second, "Oof, that's… something alright." Another foreign force comes from inside. "Um…" She takes a breath, then does as Ka-da merely suggested… push. She feels something large going through her core's depths, something large and circly… Yep, that's an egg alright… it definitely doesn't feel that tough, either.

She's never seen a 'leathery' egg before.

Then Lupus sighs in temporary relief as the first one 'pops' out. "So, what… five more?" Vella asks.

"Aw, **c'mon**!" Once more, the half-dragon complains, "I gotta go through that **five** more times?!" She groans as another egg makes its way out, "And I gotta deal with this how many times?" She glares at Ka-da, "Nope, forget it… last time. You're only getting these six out of me and we are **done**! I'm never wanna go mating again!"

The third one leaves her… well, at least she's halfway.

"This will happen again, mate." Ka-da growls.

"Don't think I didn't hear you complaining about the 'cravings' and 'mood swings'. Do **you** really wanna deal with that everytime?"

The Kitsune actually flinches from that. "Alright, how about this… We'll mate once every year or two?"

Four… "Sounds a lot more manageable." Lupus concedes. "Hey, wait! Ka-daaa! We forgot something!"

"Hm?" He hums and tilts his head, clearly confused.

"What are we gonna name them!?" How could she have forgotten that? "Oh, and we don't got long, I need names!"

"We'll think of some later, besides…"

"Oh no! Names. Now! Vellaaaaa!" Five. At least Lupus isn't so bloated.

"Yes, sister?" All the while, Vella has been gently moving the eggs aside, so that Lupus has plenty of room for the next one.

"Do you got any names?"

"I'm with Ka-da, and…"

"Aw, **c'mon**!" Another groan. "Alright, I got something for you to do after this. I need you to go to my family and get six names for kids…"

Vella sniffs, "Surely it'd be better if I help…"

"Nope! I need…" A pause, "But… wait. What if you get three male names… but there's four males? Should I get different names if one turns out more dragon? More Kitsune?"

"Sister, you're overthi…"

"Alright, go to my family. I need six male human names, six female human, six male Kitsune, six female Kitsune, six male dragon, and six female dragon names…" Lupus lists off. "Actually, wait, make that five of each… One of 'em is gonna be named Kana." As if naming one of them was a magic spell, the sixth and final egg pops out, "And **that** one is gonna be Kana." For the first time in like, two months, Lupus's draconic body has deflated to its original size… well, she's actually a little heftier than before, but that's due to her lazing about for all that time. Lupus sighs in relief. "Ka-da? Can I shift back now?"

"Yeah, but just…" Ka-da didn't even get to finish before she shifts to her human form.

A short pause, "**Ah**! Kaa-daa!" Lupus squeaks, "I still have scales!"

"...know that due to the amount of time you were shapeshifted, your body won't go all the way back for a while." He finishes.

"Why didn't you tell me that earlier?" She bares her fangs at… wait, fangs? "...that includes my teeth?!"

"Yep." He casually shrugs… then smirks, "And if you look at your chest, you'll notice your breasts haven't returned to their normal size yet, either."

She looks down and, sure enough… "I'm flatter than a plank of wood!" Lupus groans, before lying back down. "Do vixens have to deal with this, too?"

"They don't have to deal with flattened breasts… I guess that happened to you because dragons don't have them."

She glares at him, "Oh sure, keep smirking and laughing. This must be so hilarious to you!"

"Nah. I'm laughing because we won't have to deal with your 'cravings' for a few years."

Lupus feels some bile rise up, "Oh… what was I thinking then!? Grass and bear testicles?! Honey and fish scales?!" The mere thought of the things she ate caused her to vomit.

"Mmm… let's not forget the Jalapeno pasta, or the pig liver in between a bear hide and lettuce as buns… topped with deer eyes."

A pause, "...I dunno. That Jalapeno pasta still sounds pretty good." She licks her lips, "I swear, I can still feel the burn…"

Ka-da chuckles, "Your mother said the exact same thing, word for word."

Lupus looks at each of her eggs, before moving 'Kana's' eggs slightly to the side. "Kana…" She smiles, the egg compared to her human form, is relatively large. "I can't believe I was carrying **six** of these in me earlier." She rubs Kana's egg, feeling the remaining sliminess from when it was in her… then she glares at Vella, "Hey! Sister! Names from family! Go, shoo, get 'em!"

Vella closes her eyes, sighs, then nods, "Alright." She opens her eyes, then walks out, "I'll be back later."

Lupus smiles at Ka-da, "Here they are… our first set of offspring!"

"...Feeling better, now?"

"Yup!" She quickly nods. "So… how long?"

He shrugs, "I don't know." He takes his usual spot at the entrance of the cave, "Let me know when you're hungry."

"Huh? Ok." She looks between each egg… before settling next to Kana's.

…

She may or may not have a favorite.

* * *

Time in Lupus's den became much more quiet after the half-dozen batch of eggs were laid. The Wolfskin raised half-dragon and half-human is currently sleeping, not because she's lethargic, but because of the relief from the constant pressure she felt in her body for the past month or so. She could roll over whenever she wanted, she could sleep how she wanted, and boy did she sleep hard. Ka-da could even hear her **moaning** in relief.

Humans are very strange creatures.

Ka-da, being the responsible and strong alpha that he is, is on guard in front of the cave, already shifted into his Nine-tails form, ready to claw out whoever dares get near his mate and his litter… er, batch of eggs.

Except Vella, she's the only exception.

He wasn't joking when he said that his and Lupus's first response to anything attempting to get near his den would be ripped apart. If Mikoto is as wise as a Queen should be, then she'd advised her family to stay away.

That includes Seta… even Lupus probably wouldn't be able to restrain herself if the absent-minded Archer abruptly shows up.

Ears remain perked, all nine of his tails are completely still, the three blue orbs that orbit his form have dimmed and are moving rather slow-moving, and at first glance, it seems he is sleeping. Oh… is nothing further from the truth. But, he won't lie and say he isn't tired at all… the human aspects of his mate's pregnancy drained him like nothing else. The worst parts of it were those 'cravings', both the smells of those concoctions and the vomit that followed. In fact, the only time Lupus didn't vomit after a 'craving' was from the Jalapeno pasta topped with bird's blood.

… And Mikoto had to deal with those 'cravings' five separate times… on top of pregnancy lasting so much longer! He almost fell down from the surprise alone to hear that humans have to wait a whole nine months. Are humans just so used to all of those complications that it doesn't bother them?

He takes a moment to look back into the cave, where Lupus remains encircled around that one egg, 'Kana'. "Kana, hm?" He mutters as he resumes his vigil. "Not a bad name, I suppose."

* * *

Vella ran across the plains of Hoshido, rushing over to her sister's family with that absurd request. Five names for each combination?! Part of her would rather deal with her sister's cravings again. What… what is she going to do if her family can't come up with that many? Is there such a thing as a 'type' of name, beyond gender?! "Ugh…" She groans as Shirasagi slowly shows itself. See… if Ka-da were assigned this, he'd already be in the castle by now, but noooo… it **had** to be Vella.

…

Lupus is lucky Vella loves her with all of the sisterly affection she can manage.

Her pendant pulses as she made her way into the city, and then the castle… now, which one was Mikoto's scent? Shrugging, she follows the first one she catches… sister **did** say something about spicy, right? Going through the hallways, er, in her human form, she makes her way to the… training grounds? Something tells Vella she followed the wrong trail, yet as she was going to turn to leave, "Heeey, Velouria!" Hina calls her out. "Watcha doing here? Is my little sister alright?"

"Need names…"

She tilts her head, "What kind of names?"

All of these questions… "Offspring names, sister wanted…"

"She finally gave birth?!"

Ugh… "Five names for the male and female gender of humans, Wolfskin, and dragon." Vella continues.

"What do they look like?"

...Two sisters, completely adamant about ignoring the other's questions. "Where's Mikoto?"

"Boy? Girl? C'mon, I wanna know! Mother said we couldn't visit and I'm…"

"I don't know. We won't know until the eggs hatch… Where's Mikoto?"

"...eggs? Corrin laid eggs?"

"I give up." Vella turns on her heel and leaves, opting to follow the next scent trail she recognizes, while Hina stands there, stunned that her sister laid eggs. So… it wasn't the spicy scent… maybe the sweet one? Following her nose once more, Vella treks through the castle… ending up in a place filled the scent of so many other humans, maybe Mikoto is holding a… nope.

The clinic.

"V-V-Velouria?" And once more, as Vella was ready to leave, Saku calls her out.

"Help me to stay my claws, sister…" She mutters. "I need five names, five for both the male and female gender of humans, Wolfskin, and dragon."

Saku gasps, then did exactly the thing Vella was hoping she wouldn't do, "Big sister gave birth!? H-h-how many? Tw-twins? Are they healthy?"

Vella closes her eyes and sighs, "Half a dozen and…"

"Wh-wh-wh-what?! Is she okay? The human body isn't meant to hold that many babies and…"

"Sister gave birth in her dragon form, a half dozen eggs… do you have any names?"

"E-eggs…?"

"Oh… forget it!" She walks right out of the clinic, and straight into a wall, wait… when did a wall get there?

"Velouria?" Red… of course it's another family member.

"Nope, busy." She denies him right there, "Need to find Mikoto, see you."

"W-wait!" Nope, not dealing with him, she walks off.

Alright, the other sweet scent. She follows it, this time at the throne room. "Alright, this has to be it…" She opens the door… to see Mikoto in a meeting.

Oh, **of course**! She groans, "Velouria?" Mikoto asks, "Would you please wait a few more minute before…"

"Lupus needs help." Oh, what a terrible lie. "She's hurting really bad and I don't know what to do."

Clearly bothered that her daughter needs help, Mikoto suspends the meeting, then apologizing to Yukimaru for shoving the rest onto him, "Oh gods… what is it this time?"

"She gave birth to a half-dozen eggs and she needs names. Five for both the female and male human, Wolfskin, and dragon."

"And her problem? Why is she hurting so much?"

"...I lied. I'm at my limit for patience, do you have names?" Vella admits.

Earning 'the look' from Mikoto. She then sighs, "Wait a few minutes so I can write them up." Yet, as she walks away, she turns around, "Don't lie to me like that again, Velouria."

Vella scoffs, "All of these human rules and… ugh."

* * *

Lupus stretches out, feeling far more refreshed than she has in over two months. "Oh… that was wonderful!" She yawns, "Let me tell you, you don't know how much you roll over until you can't." A pause, "Wait… is sister not back yet?" It's… almost sunset.

"I just caught her scent… literally right now." Ka-da casually comments. "Hungry?"

"Oh… yes I am!" She eagerly exclaims, "I feel like I could eat two bears!"

He chuckles, "Yea, sure…" He gets up, "I'll be back soon."

No less than half a minute later did Vella come running in with… "I… got… a… list… sister." The list is longer than Ka-da and his tails! If his tails were attached end-to-end.

"...I only asked for five of each."

"Yeah, well… apparently your mother was thinking of children names as soon as the each of you were born… for when you all had children." She extends the list, "So, here… I'm going to hunt, I'm fricken' starving!"

"Ka-da just…"

"Don't care! I'm killing a bear and eating it for myself!" Vella **storms** out.

Lupus tilted her head, what's gotten into her? Shrugging, she sits beside Kana's egg and starts reading the list, "Name number 1: Hyperion," One… out of two-hundred thirty-one. Lupus is going to be reading names for a long time… hopefully she can finish before the eggs hatch.

* * *

**A/N:** A half-dozen eggs… so, even though Lupus gave birth, we still don't know what they look like. But… humor me a moment while I share the general idea of what to expect. And for the sake of shortening names, they will all be referred to as 'Kana'.

There are two types of Kanas: The pure-blood and the hybrids. Let's start off with 'pure-blood', because I don't literally mean that one Kana will only have human blood, since that'd be impossible. No, what I mean is this: First off, we'll have the pure-blood human Kana… this Kana will **not** be able to shapeshift at all, this Kana will come out of the egg as a human. Second is the pure-blood Kitsune Kana, this Kana can **only** shapeshift into a Kitsune, this Kana will come out of the egg as a Kitsune. The third, obviously, would be the pure-blood Dragon Kana, who can **only** shapeshift into a dragon, and this Kana will come out of the egg as a Dragon. On top of that, each of the pure-bloods can only efficiently fight in their given form.

The second type are the hybrids, and I'll start off with the 'canon' version: the Dragon/Human hybrid. This Kana can fight as either human or dragon, and can come out of the egg as either a human or dragon. The next is the Kitsune/Human hybrid, this Kana fights as either Kitsune or human, and will come out of the egg as a Kitsune or human. The third is the Dragon/Kitsune hybrid, this Kana fights as either Kitsune or Dragon, and can come out of the egg as a dragon or a Kitsune. The final one is the 'Balanced' hybrid, this Kana can fight as a human, dragon, or Kitsune, and will come out of the egg as a human, dragon, or Kitsune.

And, of course on top of all of this, each Kana can be either male or female.

So, there you go. Start taking your bets on how many of each kind of Kana is popping out of those eggs.


	4. Get Over Here and Fuck Me!

**A/N:** Another not-quite-a-week wait between the next chapter, another chapter with Lupus, Vella, and Ka-da with the batch of eggs. Lupus may or may not be getting a bit more defiant this time around.

* * *

**Canon Name = Nickname:** Corrin = Lupus. Kaden = Ka-da. Velouria = Vella.

* * *

**Consort**: Oh yes, I almost forgot… I only listed the physical side of things. Let's not forget all of the mentality combinations. Lupus could have two 'Dragon/Human' hybrids, but one of them acts more like a dragon and the other more like a human. So, there are variants based on gender, race, and personality. Gonna need a freakin' graph for this stuff.

Something else crossed my mind, too… kits, dragonlings, and babies won't all grow up at the same time, would they? So, a more 'human-dominant' Kana would grow up relatively slowly when compared to a 'Kitsune-dominant' Kana.

I gotta agree there, I think 'human' won't be as prominent when it comes to genes. I can also get behind 'dragon' being the most dominant. Lupus is only half-dragon, but once she had her initial shapeshift, then her dragon-attributes just started shining intensely.

Oh geez… Kaden having some hidden bloodline? Could you imagine if he had a Wolfskin great-grandparent or something? Sure, the Kitsune blood would be potent enough to almost completely cover it up, but it wouldn't completely eliminate the chance. Not that I would do that, though. He's pure-blood Kitsune.

Yep, the combinations are just so high… There's definitely going to be one 'Balanced' hybrid. I'm also probably going to avoid a pure-blooded human. Oh. oh… could you imagine a pure-blooded human, but with either a dragon or Kitsune mindset?

I'm at least sorta familiar with Greek mythology, it's the only one I have bothered reading up on.

* * *

Lupus stretches as she wakes up from her little nap. It has been roughly three weeks since she's lain her first batch of eggs, and she is absolutely grateful for the lack of pressure on her body. She's even been able to get out of the den for some proper exercise, which… she's out of shape. She's still faster and stronger than the average human, but she's sluggish and weak to how she was before she became a sleeping log… no, logs don't get as fat as she did. The point is that she rarely did more than lie down and sleep when she was pregnant.

...Logs also don't give birth to a half-dozen eggs.

She's taken an instant liking to Kana's egg, to which she's probably giving this one more attention when compared to the others. She **really** wants to see what he… or she will look like. Is this a human thing? Preferring one over the other? "Ka-daaaa!" She whines.

"Yes, mate?" His Nine-tail's… nine tails start swishing around and those three orbs speed up a bit, but he otherwise stays still, forever a guard to the den.

"Is having a favorite offspring something Kitsunes do?"

"Nope." He is quick to answer.

"I see…" She hums, before looking at that absurdly long list of names, "Did you like any of the names?"

"I'd be surprised if I didn't find at least one."

"I saw a few dozen that I liked." Vella adds… next to a certain egg. She too, has picked one that she likes. Weird. They have no idea what the offspring will be like, but the two sisters already formed a close preference. "Onyx." She calls out.

"Even if none of them come out as that color?" Lupus asks.

"None of them **can** come out in that color." Ka-da supplies. "Neither you or me have black on us."

"Just because you choose a name that shares a meaning with a color, doesn't mean they have to match that color!" Vella counters.

"Korial?" The half-dragon asks.

"How about Aria?"

"Dumas?"

"Siren?" The two sisters continue to trade names.

"How long are you two going to do that?" Ka-da asks… immediately being on the receiving end of two glares.

"Males wouldn't understand." Vella scoffs.

"They **need** names **now**!" Lupus whines. "Besides, if it's really bothering you, then… I dunno, go hunt."

Swish, swish, still… His tails slowly come to a halt, "Watch your tone, mate." He nearly growls, before his tails shift around some more.

Unperturbed, Lupus hold her nose and says, "'Watch your tone, mate.'" Then snorts, before laughing… Vella joins in. Ka-da sighs, before muttering something about 'humans'. "See? All bark and no bite." Lupus continues. "You're getting soft!"

Her heartbeat shoots up when he turns his head towards her, staring her down. "Sister…?" Vella starts.

"Don't push it." Ka-da warns.

"...Hey, I don't get pregnant if I'm not in heat, right?" Lupus smiles.

Ka-da nods, "No reason to mate if…"

"Don't care, pin me down." She breathes. "I'm still part human, and I'm feeling something…"

"No." Ka-da returns his gaze to outside the den.

"What was that word humans use… 'spiny'? I'm feeling 'prickly'... no, that's not it." Lupus rolls the idea around in her head. "'Sharp'... 'Pawy'... Oh! 'Horny'!"

"...'Horny'?" Vella echoes.

"Yeah, that's it. I read it in some book that had a drawing of two naked people on the front." Lupus nods, "I remember one of the lines being 'Get over here and fuck me.'"

"Humans are weird…"

"I remember it so well, because I was reading that book out-loud, then big sister just so happened to be walking by." Lupus starts giggling, "She… she thought I was talking about her!" She takes a breath, "So then… Ka-daaa! Get over here and fuck me!"

"It's a waste of energy if you aren't going to get pregnant from it." Lupus pouts from his stubborn response. "So, no." Raising her head, she looks at Vella… then wags her eyebrows. Trying to be as silent as she can, Lupus gets off the… "Lay back down." He commands without even moving an inch.

"Aw…" She complies, before another pause, "Hey, Vella~?"

"Yes, sister?" To which Lupus wags her eyebrows. "I'd have no idea what to do."

"It's easy!" She eagerly exclaims, if way too quickly. "It's kinda like mating, but you're using your fingers and mouth instead of a… hot and slick… Ka-da! Are you sure…"

"Be. Quiet." He **growls**.

"Get over here and make me."

"Sister?" Vella asks, "You are being…"

"I wanna get 'laid', and Ka-da's being thick about it!" Sighing, she lowers her head again. "Fine, I'll just go to sleep again…"

"This has to be another human thing…" Vella shrugs.

"It's causing me to lose my patience is what it is." Ka-da scoffs. "I'm not going to keep bending for all these human habits if you're going to be so persistent about them."

Looking from Lupus to Ka-da, Vella sighs, "Ka-da? Would you mind if I took the next watch now?"

"I'm perfectly fine right now. Wait until it's time to hunt."

"Of course." She looks at her sister, then closes her eyes, sighs again, and lies her head down, staying next to the egg that she likes, "Just… listen to him, okay?"

"Yeah, yeah…" Lupus gripes.

* * *

Lupus awakes once more, this time to the sight of Vella not in the den… Ka-da still on guard. "She's gone hunting." He supplies without even looking back. Makes sense, as if Ka-da can, he'd rather be the one guarding the den. Lupus looks between the eggs, not-so-patiently awaiting the moment they'll hatch and…

"Uh, Ka-da?" She asks.

"Yes?" He doesn't sound a bit irritated, perhaps noting that she sounds genuinely concerned.

"Kits drink from their mother's teats, right?"

"Yep."

"And so do human babies?"

"That's what your mother said."

"...What am I going to do if there are more than two human and kits? I only got two breasts! And… and Vella won't have any to spare."

A short pause follows… it seems Ka-da wasn't prepared for that. "You're right…" He sighs. "When Vella gets back, I'll go over to your family again."

"Did mother mention something about it?"

"On one of her explanations, yes. There's a type of woman called… uh." He pauses, "'Moist nurse'. Their job is to provide milk for children, so…"

Lupus unconsciously growls and it took her a moment to realize she did growl, "Are we getting one of those?" Even her question comes out aggressive.

"Two, probably. Might only need one, but I'd rather not make multiple trips." His voice, too, comes out aggressive.

...Never get between the parents and their offspring. "Is there a way to, uh… 'turn off' or 'tone down' the viciousness for these 'moist nurses'?"

"Since they weren't here the whole time? I'd have to mark them with my scent." Ka-da supplies.

"So… you're gonna have to have sex with them?"

He scoffs, "No, of course not."

"You're gonna rub your body against them?"

"In a sense, yes. But, there's a more potent form of scent-marking."

"And that is?" Lupus presses.

Yet, even Ka-da seems hesitant, "Uh… treat them like a tree?"

Tick tock, some time passes as Lupus tries to figure out the implication and… "Oh." She replies. "Wish I didn't ask now." Lupus frankly shouldn't have been bothered by the idea, taking her 'cravings' into consideration. "Have you decided on any of the names, yet?"

"I'll pick on one after the eggs hatch." He could at least try and sound more interested in the idea, "You and Vella can pick the rest."

Lupus lets out a huff, "There's six eggs and three adults here… we should each get two, and since Vella and I already picked one…"

He sighs, "I'll look at the list after Vella comes back with the food."

Lupus smiles, "That works!" Then she looks over at that, quite honestly, **too** long list. She was about to add something else, had Vella's scent not entered the den… alongside the smell of fresh meat.

...and if she didn't know any better, she'd say the egg that Vella favors started wiggling.

"Food?" Her Wolfskin sister offers as she drags in an entire **bear**.

"A bear?" Ka-da states the obvious, "That's… too much. Maybe if some of the eggs hatched."

Vella's mouth twitches upward, "Happened to spot him again… wanted to finish him off now."

"Uh… 'him'? 'Again'?" Ka-da echoes.

"Ka-da. Sister… meet the bear that I ripped off a pair of testicles for your grass, water, and bear ball stew…" Shifting him around some, and after a hind leg was raised… sure enough.

This male was most certainly **not** sporting a pair of testicles. "Oof…" Lupus says, "Poor thing."

"Sister, he's dead. He isn't 'poor'."

"...better off than he was earlier, then. I actually feel kinda bad for him when he was alive… wonder if he had a mate, too." The brief image of a ball-less male attempting to mate with a female crosses her mind, "Hee hee!" She starts giggling.

"Sister…?" Vella tilts her head, clearly confused.

Ka-da sighs, "Whatever…" He gets up to take a chunk out of the bear.

Lupus's giggles die down as she takes a look at the bear, "I dunno if I can stomach this raw right now, but…" She moves over to take a bite anyway. "Ewwww…" She gags. "Kaaa-daaa… Vella~! I need my food cooked again!" She spits the piece of meat back out.

* * *

With a full set of stomachs, the trio lies down. Lupus is, unsurprisingly, next to Kana's egg. Vella curls up next to Onyx's egg. Ka-da guards the entrance. It's frankly amazing how calm things have gotten after those half-dozen offspring came out of Lupus. No more 'cravings', no more 'mood swings', just a whole lotta napping and guarding.

Stretching with a yawn, Lupus places her head closer to the now-dry-leather-shell that is Kana's egg. "Mmm… Kana." She mutters, a smile gracing her face. "Hey, sister? How much of a 'dragon', 'human', or 'Kitsune' do you think Onyx is gonna be?"

"Mostly dragon." Vella replies. "What about Kana?"

"I'd like for Kana to be, like, even. A perfect blend of each." Lupus concludes. "I'd want Kana to always be happy and smiling and cheerful…"

"And if Kana doesn't turn out like that? If none of them do?" Ka-da asks.

"I'll love them all the same."

Vella scoffs, "And if one does turn out like that…"

"Then I miiiiight love that one a bit more." Lupus giggles. "Ka-da, what…"

"Pure-blooded Kitsune." He cuts her off. "Maybe a pure-blooded dragon."

She frowns, "You don't want any of them to be even a bit human?"

"Nope."

She huffs, "Fine, then. Vella?"

"I think it'd be nice for one of them to turn out more human." She smiles…

Lupus smiles. "Women…" Ka-da scoffs.

"Yeah well… I hope that the 'pure-blooded' Kitsune one acts more like a human than a Kitsune!" She sticks her tongue out.

"Hmph." His tails shift around, but that's about it.

"He obv…" Vella starts, before something in the den shifts around. "Um…?"

Ka-da's ears perk up and he turns his head around. Lupus's eyes scan the eggs. "That one!" She points it out. It's neither Kana's or Onyx's, but as for right now… that doesn't really matter. Her heart races as that single egg starts to shake. She scoots a little closer, though she's still close enough to Kana's egg to notice even the slightest shift in that one. "C'mon…" Lupus whines, becoming far too impatient.

Shake, shake… crack! At long last, the shell slowly gives in to the force of the offspring. Lupus takes a breath as it turns out the offspring's appearance is…

* * *

**A/N:** Oof, well there's the end of this chapter. This isn't just pulling the rug out from under ya… this is taking a grenade and blowing up the ground that was just under ya. So, what will the first one is gonna look like? More human? Dragon? Kitsune? Well, even if I did leave some big cliff-hangers, I did finish off one very important arc…

The fate of the ball-less bear.


	5. One Tiny, Two Tiny, Three Tiny Offspring

**A/N:** I'd like to take the time to point out that I'm applying **a lot** of real-world biology and logic to a pair of otherwise genetically incompatible sex partners… a woman who is half-human and half-dragon, who is raised by a race of wolves that can talk and understand higher thinking. Alongside a fox who can also talk and have a higher mental capability that more closely resembles a human. I'm not applying all of it, there are still going to be some fantasy 'settings' to these things.

It's up to you to decide whether this is driven by determination or insanity… but, if you're this far along, I'm assuming determination… or maybe you're here to see how far off my rocker I go here. *shrugs*

* * *

**Canon Name = Nickname:** Corrin = Lupus. Velouria = Vella. Kaden = Ka-da.

…

Or have I beaten this into everyone's head enough that this doesn't need to be brought up?

* * *

**Consort:** I think the dragonlings should come first, since they would be naturally accustomed to the leathery egg shells. Then it would be the kits, then the babies. Not off by much, mind you, but just enough to have them come in… waves?

I'm sure Vella could get some milk pumping out… and they would, at the absolute most, need four of her teats.

I'd also like to take the time to thank ya for that last bit of information in our latest set of PMs, since that was what gave this chapter enough 'beef' to come out as more of an actual chapter, rather than an addon that should have been with the last chapter.

* * *

**Half-beastdragonsoul2013:** Yuuuup! I don't plan on making anymore that close to a reveal again… I hope I can deliver on the hype now.

* * *

Lupus's eyes are practically glued onto the egg as the shell slowly starts to chip away. Piece by small piece pops off, and she has since inched closer. Her heart is racing and she finds herself holding her breath, her head slightly tilted. Vella was roughly in the same position, and the two sisters share a glance. Even Ka-da has moved a bit closer. Seconds felt like hours as the enough of the egg shell finally broke enough for a small head to pop out.

Scales covered it, though they were undoubtedly significantly softer than even the scales covering Lupus's stomach in her dragon form. Narrowed reptilian eyes looked around, while a small, thin forked tongue flicked out. A small, whiny screech soon followed. The tiny dragon… wingless right now, mind you, poked more off the shell off before he crawled out. The first thing he did with his new-found freedom was to stumble his way over to Lupus and curl up.

Lupus felt like she was going to pass out from pure happiness. The tiny dragon's scales were… actually quite orange, more akin to Ka-da's fur color. A far cry from Lupus's watery blue, not to mention he seemed to be missing the head armor. Maybe he'll grow it later? Alongside his wings? Oh wait, there are these tiny little stubs where Lupus's wings would be in her dragon form. His eye color shared the vivid red of Lupus's, at least. His horns are almost non-existent, with how small they are. His tail is also barely an inch or two out there.

She loves him all the same, "Nozarmus." Lupus declares. "He's Nozarmus."

"Nozarmus…" Vella echoes, smiling. "Is he gonna be more of a dragon?"

"He's in his dragon form already, so I'd think so." She nods, pushing her nose slightly against Nozarmus. "You're so cute~" She coos.

Young Nozarmus replies with a weak screech.

…

And as if responding to the newborn dragonling's call, several more started shaking. Crack, chip, pop… more started following. The next two were also dragonlings, one holding Lupus's watery blue scales across his body… whilst the other had white scales on her stomach, orange across her sides, and watery blue across her back. Other than that, however? They both look the same as Nozarmus. Eye color, stubs for wings and horns, a short little tail and no head armor.

Two males, one female, all dragonlings. Screech, screech, stumble, they both lumber towards Lupus. Half of her first batch of eggs were all dragonlings. "Uh, uh…" Lupus fails to think of names, looking towards the other two adults for help.

"That one **is** Onyx, remember?" Vella points out the tri-colored dragonling. Lupus looks over to the egg her sister favored… and sure enough, it already hatched.

...She was so focused on the dragonlings that she didn't notice **which** ones were hatching. "And the second…?"

"Um…" She thinks it over… and that was the time that another egg started chipping away, like it was telling her to hurry up. "Sven." She concludes, right as the newest one poked its head out. And this one?

He looked like a mini-Ka-da, literally one-for one… just smaller. Eye color, fur color, even down to the fur pattern, "Kaaa-daa~" Lupus sings, "**You're** naming him!"

He sighs, "It's only fair, I suppose… he does look **just** like me." A short pause, "Si-el." The two sisters share a look.

"Of course he would choose one of the 'weird' names." Lupus states, causing Vella's mouth to twitch upward.

"Males…" Vella and Lupus sigh in unison.

He shrugs, "What? You asked me to name **one**."

Si-el, the mini-Ka-da, slowly makes his way towards Lupus, "...I can try, at least?" Vella asks, looking at Lupus for permission.

"Do you have any?"

"I don't know, sister… I don't suck my own nipples." She flatly states.

Lupus shrugs, but smiles, "I'd rather you than some moist-nurse."

Which causes Vella to have a huge smile, "C'mere, little Si-el…" She coos as she lowers herself to the ground, teats on full display… and as if they emit their own signal, he slowly shifts his direction. Well, that hopefully means. "...Yep. I do." She squeaks as he takes his first few, if hesitant, licks.

The fifth one shakes and cracks… leaving Kana's egg last… which it has yet to shake. From the fifth emerges yet another kit, though she sports a watery-blue fur, with white on her stomach. Akin to Si-el, she's almost one-for-one with looks for Ka-da… except that wherever Ka-da and Si-el have orange, she has watery-blue. She follows the trail of Si-el, stumbling towards Vella. "Celestine." Lupus concludes, the two sisters nodding in agreement.

The half-human and half-dragon then looks at Kana's egg… growing increasingly worried as the minutes tick by. "Maybe Kana's more human?" Ka-da offers, "So… that one is going to take longer?"

"C'mon Kana… stop worrying me so much." Lupus huffs as the three little dragonlings near her shifts around to stay next to their mother's body. The egg slowly starts to shift and shake, before the shell **finally** cracks. "Whew, you had me really worried, Kana…"

Human. He's sporting a vibrant orange hair color, like Ka-da, though his ears are pointed… and Lupus swears she can already make out several sharpened teeth. He is also sporting red eyes, like Lupus. Ooo… he's also got a tiny orange-fur tail going on, too. Compared to the rest, he's also relatively small… Well, if human women are **supposed** to have babies in them for nine whole months, then maybe coming out of an egg this soon is bad? He is strong enough to get out, but she can't help but feel bad…

He's just a bit larger than her breasts… and Lupus has a pretty small pair of teats.

In response to Kana's extreme sluggishness, Lupus gently scoops him up… the tiny Kana whimpers. Lupus lies on her back, then gently places him on her breast, guiding him towards one of her breasts.

...Then she also squeaks as, for whatever reason, he does, in fact, have tiny… tiny teeth. But, at least he's able to drink her milk.

The three little dragonlings around her shuffle around once more. "So… Ka-da? Whaddya think?" She suddenly asks.

"...They're quite small." He states, "Even by Kitsune standards."

"I agree, sister. You don't remember any of the pups being this small, do you?" Vella nods.

"I can get why Kana's so small… human babies are **supposed** to be inside their mother for nine months." She sighs. "And maybe I can understand the trio of dragonlings here… but our little pair of kits?"

"Well… let's see how quickly they grow, then." Ka-da ultimately shrugs it off, choosing instead to, once more, guard the den's entrance. Fair enough, Lupus is going to be out again… this time to breastfeed Kana. Even Vella is going to be quite busy… in fact, she could potentially be even more occupied, since she has more than two nipples.

Lupus groans, "I'm tired of lazing about so long."

"Welcome to motherhood, mate." Ka-da drily states.

"Did you just let out a… what is that human thing called… a 'quip'?" Lupus asks.

"'Quip'?" Vella echoes.

"A, uh… wise-ass statement?" She continues, still unsure.

"Humans have wise-asses?" Vella chuckles, startling the kits, but they otherwise continue suckling for more milk.

"I dunno." Lupus softly shrugs, as to not bother Kana too much.

"Humans are weird." The two female say at the exact same time, then Vella raises an eyebrow while Lupus stifles a giggle.

"Hey, Vella? I love you with all the…"

"...Sisterly affection I can manage." The two finish at the same time. This time, Lupus huffs and Vella stifles a giggle. Still, Lupus gives into the good mood and she smiles, then looks at the tiny Kana.

"My little Kana…" She hums, before taking a single finger to pet the boy's head. "Still concerns me how small you all are…" Screech, screech, screech. The three tiny dragonlings whine. "Nozarmus, Onyx, and Sven…" She coos as a finger grazes each of their soft-scaled heads.

"And Si-el and Celestine…" Vella adds, giving the two kits a gentle rub.

"Half a dozen offspring." Lupus nods. "I'm gonna be worn out by the the time they have grown up." A short pause follows, "Kaaa-daaa!"

She swears she just heard him gripe, followed by, "Yes, mate?"

"I just thought of something… what about the Dragonstones and Beaststones?"

"What about them?" He asks.

"How are we gonna get them? It took mother several days to get mine and…"

"Pfft, humans." Vella chuckles.

"Days?" Ka-da echoes, "I shouldn't be surprised, it's not like humans know shifters well."

Lupus raises her head a little and looks between the two shifters, "Huh?"

"It isn't difficult, sister." Vella starts.

"Just gotta find a half-dozen or so crystals and attune them to the offspring." Ka-da casually states.

"Really? That's it?" Lupus tilts her head, "Huh, that does sound really easy." Then… why did it take mother several days?

"Humans wouldn't know how to do it well." Ka-da continues, "I'm honestly curious on how it takes them more than ten minutes to make one."

"Yep." Vella nods. "It usually takes longer to find the gemstone then it does to attune it."

"Wait… does it have to be a crystal or a gemstone?" Lupus asks.

"It doesn't **have** to be either." Vella stresses, "But, they are usually really durable and quite common, so that's what we use."

"The stronger the item, the more a shifter can put into it, making it easier to achieve the higher form." Ka-da speaks up. "But… it's really rare to find something strong enough to make into a Beastrune."

"Never seen one before." Vella nods again.

"Beastrune?" Lupus echoes.

"It's like… the human equivalent of 'Silver' weapons." Ka-da supplies, "But it's even more rare. Mainly because the gems needed are deep underground, and it isn't worth the effort to dig them out."

"Not to mention that the humans take those gems out of the ground to make jewelry." Vella adds. "As if we don't have a hard enough time, they also gotta take the good materials."

A short pause, "Sister? You're snarling… and bothering the kits."

"Hm? Oh…" She takes a breath, "Shh… it's okay…" Vella whispers, successfully calming the kits down, to which they resume breastfeeding.

"So, we just gotta get some gemstone and crystals?" Lupus asks.

"Yep."

"We can probably find some in the den." Ka-da states, "But until they get older, I'm only leaving to hunt. Beaststones and Dragonstones don't take that much of a priority. They can live without them for a long time."

"Well, they don't **need** them to live, but if they go too long without shifting into their more… human forms, then they won't be able to at all." Vella adds.

"Really?" Lupus asks, "Hey, Vella. Why didn't anyone tell me this back at the pack?!"

She shrugs, "What use would that information be back then?" Oh, good point. "Honestly didn't think you'd get a mate in the first place." She adds with a smirk.

A second passes, "**Hey**!" Lupus narrows her eyes at her sister, "Why not?!"

"This was back before I found out you were a half-dragon, that's why." She admits. "You wouldn't have made a good mate if you couldn't shapeshift."

"...Yeah yeah, I get it." Lupus sticks her tongue out…. To which young Kana perks his head up, perhaps interested in the sudden appendage. She pulls her tongue back in and he tilts his head… so she sticks it back out… then back in. Young Kana starts letting out small but weak giggles, which causes Lupus to smile.

Yep, she definitely has a favorite.

She then feels something poking at her side. Now it seems the dragonlings are interested in whatever is causing the youngest to make noise. Lupus bites back a hiss when they decides it's a good idea to start climbing on her. Thankfully, they can understand that subdued hiss, so they detach themselves. "They're not going to know boundaries at first, mate." Ka-da supplies without even looking back. "That includes the kits. You're going to have to draw the line somewhere, so they know when it's time to stop clawing into you."

"They shouldn't at all…" Lupus gripes.

"Maybe if they were human babies, I guess." Vella shrugs. "But for pups, kits, and even dragonlings it seems… they need to be taught."

"Well, if that's true, then Kana won't have that same instinct…" She frowns as the small baby is… napping, actually. Kana is lying down on her chest, with his head propped up at the start of the rise of her breast. "They're gonna have to keep their distance, then." She then smiles at little Kana. "Aww… who's a sleepy baby?"

Vella chuckles again, a sound the kits have seemed to grown used to, as they continue to… oh, they're sleeping now, too. Unlike Kana, however, Siel's and Celestine's mouths are still attached to Vella's nipples. "Kana's going to take the most work, isn't he?" Vella asks. "He'll probably grow the slowest, not to mention all the extra attention he is going to need, being the only human here."

"Yeah, well… I'll make sure gets what he needs." Lupus resolves. "Besides, with that logic, Nozarmus, Onyx, and Sven will take the least effort."

"Get them some meat every now and then and they should be fine." Ka-da agrees. "The kits will need some meat in a few weeks, but as for the baby…?"

"They have names, Ka-da." Lupus rounds on him, if a bit aggressively. "Use them." He raises his head, stares her down, then resumes looking out the den.

...Males.

Sighing Lupus lowers her head. "Suppose I'll get a nap in, while the kits are…" Vella announces.

"Agreed." Lupus gently responds.

"I'll hunt after you both wake up." Ka-da states.

Yawning, Lupus closes her eyes and falls into a gentle slumber. Nozarmus, Onyx, and Sven are on one side of her, while Kana rests on her chest. Si-el and Celestine are still propped up next to Vella. Well… the first day of having offspring.

She's ready for the next day!

* * *

**A/N:** And there they are, alongside a new list! And oh boy… Imma gonna be referring to this list quite a bit. The order for this is…

**Name**: which species he/she was born as, and his/her primary colors.

**Nozarmus**: He is born a dragonling and he has orange scales. **Onyx**: She is born a dragonling and she has white, orange, and blue scales. **Sven**: He is born a dragonling and he has blue scales. **Si-el**: He is born a Kitsune and he has orange fur. **Celestine**: She is born a Kitsune and has blue fur. **Kana**: He is born a human and has orange hair.


	6. A Day of Raising Offspring

**A/N:** So… prepare for the sleepless nights and constant care, because now Vella, Lupus, and Ka-da have a half-dozen offspring to care for!

* * *

**Canon Name = Nickname:** Corrin = Lupus. Velouria = Vella. Kaden = Ka-da.

* * *

**Offspring Name**: which species he/she was born as, and his/her primary colors. **Nozarmus**: He is born a dragonling and he has orange scales. **Onyx**: She is born a dragonling and she has white, orange, and blue scales. **Sven**: He is born a dragonling and he has blue scales. **Si-el**: He is born a Kitsune and he has orange fur. **Celestine**: She is born a Kitsune and has blue fur. **Kana**: He is born a human and has orange hair.

* * *

**Consort:** Eenie, meenie, miney, mick, which name will I pick?

Or as mini-versions of Lupus's dragon form and Ka-da's… oh wait, I never shown off his Kitsune form in this fic. Eh, y'all get the point. They're a bundle of mini-Lupus and mini-Ka-da, with fur or scale colors of either or both.

...and while their initial form indicates what they'll be best at, perhaps their color will indicate their secondary form? So, in that assumption Sven is the 'pure-blooded' dragonling and Si-el is the 'pure-blooded' Kitsune. Nozarmus and Celestine are the Kitsune/Dragon hybrids, with the former having slightly higher Dragon potency and the latter with slightly higher Kitsune potency. Onyx is going to end up also as a Dragon/Kitsune hybrid, but with a fairly high amount of Human in her. And finally, Kana is the 'Balanced' hybrid.

Oh yes… Lupus and Vella better get their sleep in now, and poor poor Ka-da. He's already been the most awake just for being on guard, but now whatever rest he could get is probably going to be taken away from the infants.

Hm…

Onyx should get an Onyx, it'd be a nice nod to show off that Lupus was raised as a Wolfskin in Nohr. Celestine could get a light-blue ish gem… er, two that is. Nozarmus, Celestine, Onyx, and Kana are each going to need two gems/crystals. Maybe two different colors along with different textures? That way there's more than just a texture difference between the Beaststone and Dragonstone?

...I didn't really think about bringing in Keaty's and Silky's kits/pups.

* * *

Lupus thought the hardest part was already over. She thought that it couldn't get worse than puffing up into a dragon-balloon with all of the cravings and mood swings. Well, it's still pretty high up there, but the offspring are proving to be another challenge on their own…

Actually, the kits and Kana are the ones causing the most 'problems'. Nozarmus and Sven are actually really calm. They're kind of 'live and let live', just feed them some meat every now and then and they're fine. Onyx causes the least amount of issues, because despite being born a dragonling, it's clear that she is getting more influence from either the Kitsune or Human sides… maybe both.

Lupus has never heard a strange a sound as a dragonling whining. Even Nozarmus and Sven seem baffled by the sound. It sounds like the tiny screeches from the other dragonlings, but it's mixed with the Kitsune whining and just a tad bit of Kana's crying. What comes out is probably the worst of the sounds…

Thankfully, Onyx doesn't whine much, since her dragon side keeps her relatively calm and not asking for much… but boy, it's apparent when she **does** want something.

Next up is Si-el and Celestine. Si-el, being the 'pure-blooded' Kitsune that he is, thankfully comes out as 'normal'. Ka-da states that he is acting exactly how a kit should act. Milk and snuggling up to his mother… or in this case, Vella. Celestine, thanks to her dragon blood, is less demanding than Si-el. She doesn't drink milk as long and she tends to curl up and sleep sooner. She has also already started eating meat.

…

Then there is the young and tiny Kana. It is near impossible to figure out what he wants in a given moment. He doesn't just cry for Lupus, her milk, her presence, or food. He can cry for movement, to relieve himself, and… and…

Actually Lupus, Vella, and Ka-da still don't know all the reasons why Kana starts crying. Don't get her wrong, Lupus still loves Kana just a little bit more than the rest, but he's also the most demanding.

He's the main reason why everyone, including the other offspring, aren't getting an entire night's sleep.

Part of Lupus wants to reach out to her mother for a list of why babies cry… the other part of her refuses to leave even a few steps away from her offspring, as well as the **need** to rip through **anyone** who **dares** get near her offspring.

…

And considering how gentle and kind as she usually is, it still surprises her that her thoughts can turn so savage so fast when it comes to her offspring. Yet, on the other hand, it doesn't surprise her at all.

Lupus's head perks up at the sound of none other than her little Kana sniffling. Oh boy… time to play the game of 'what does Kana want this time?'. Well, considering he is both lying on her, removing the guess that it's because he wants her presence, and is positioned close enough to reach her nipple, so it isn't because he wants milk. She strokes his head a bit, but that doesn't seem to be it, either.

...If it was to relieve himself, then that would have already happened. "Shh, don't cry, my little Kana~" She tries speaking to him gently… well more like singing lightly. So, she sticks her tongue out, since that action has been a reliable source of getting his attention and while it does do just that… it doesn't stop his tiny whimpers. Scrunching her face… nope. "Ugh…" She groans. "Nope, that's it… Ka-da! Go over to my mother and **ask** for things to help calm babies!" She calls him out.

"I'm…" He starts.

"I don't care!" She cuts him off, "I don't know all the things babies want! So, stop being such a stubborn male and help me to take care of Kana in the long run! Shoo!" Vella snickers at her sister's outburst.

Ka-da takes a breath, before he slowly rises. "I'm making this a short trip, then." He gripes. "I'll be back in a few hours." Still in his Nine-tails form, Ka-da hits his top speed in a few strides, going fast enough to blow the grass aside and send dirt flying up.

Lupus sighs, "Ka-da's a great mate and he's really determined to make sure we're safe, but…" She then notices that, for whatever reason, Kana has stopped whimpering. Oh, so it's something he fixed on his own this time. "He also needs to understand that my offspring and me are **not** 'pure-blooded' beast… or dragon. We're gonna need different things." A short pause, "How's Ki-el and Celestine doing?"

"Napping." She quickly replies. At least they're… wait.

Lupus pokes her head out to each of her sides, "Vella? Where are my three little dragonlings?" Kana let out another whimper, seeming to respond to her question.

…

So he was crying because the three dragonlings wandered off? "I thought they were lying beside you?" She responds.

"They were, but…" Lupus pauses, "Kana? I'm going to get you over to my sister… momma needs to find the little dragonlings." She gently nudges Kana.

And all she gets in response is a light snooze.

Raising an eyebrow, she ever so gently lifts her tiny Kana up and over to Vella, positioning him next to another nipple… her third out of her six nipples. "I'll be here if you need me…" She lazily responds.

Nodding, the first thing Lupus does is sniff the air, quickly locating the wandering trio of dragonling scents. Alright then, deeper into the cave. She keeps her eyes on the ground as she slowly moves ahead. They couldn't have gotten far, right? They're still young, after all.

Screech, screech… two sounds echo in the darker parts of the den. Lupus takes a moment to tap into her Dragonstone some, so that she can actually **see** where she is going. "Nozarmus? Onyx? Sven?" She calls out quietly.

Screech, no wait… that's that almost-painful screech-cry that only Onyx has. At least she doesn't sound pained or in fear. Screech, though this one has a more… mewling mixed with it, Nozarmus, then. She can hear them, now only if she could see them… Screech, but this one sounds 'pure'... Sven and it came from…

Above?

No, just off to the side… Sven is doing everything he can to scale the rock wall… and it looks like he's succeeding quite well. "Sven!" That doesn't mean she's going to risk him falling off the side. The pure-blooded dragonling stops mid-climb and turns his head towards her…

Then hisses at her.

Stunned for a moment that Sven actually **hissed** at her, he resumes climbing. The mewl-screech comes from on the floor, as Nozarmus is shuffling across the ground, trying his best to mimic Sven. "Oh… jeez." Lupus sighs. "Alright, where's Onyx?"

Mewl-Cry-Screech follows… from a hole? Lupus stoops down and crawls over to a newly made hole… to which Onyx pops her head out of. "You three had me so worried…" Lupus sighs. Onyx tilts her head, then goes back into the mini-hole, "Hey!" What came out next was **not** Onyx… but, well…

An Onyx. The gem, that is. Where did she… how?! Onyx, the offspring, proudly pushes Onyx, the gem, out of the mini-hole and starts rolling it towards where they all should have been earlier.

Lupus was still reeling from the fact that Onyx found, what is supposed to be, a Nohrian mineral… well, and that Sven hissed at her. "Sven? Nozarmus?" She calls the two males out, "Can we… Ow!" Something hard just bonked her on the head, "What is…" She stoops down and picks up… another gem? "Where are you guys finding these?!" It's… kinda green, actually. Shortly after, Sven landed on her head, his claws barely even scratching her… then he does dig his claws in as he climbs down to her hand and **nudges** the gem out. "Well, aren't you the dominant type?" She drily asks…

Getting another hiss in response. Sven then hops down, landing without any issue. Finally, he starts rolling the gem back to the 'main' area of the den. "Nozarmus?" She calls out for the last of the three. "Hey… now where'd you go?!" She keeps her eyes on the ground as she scans the area, ultimately failing to find orange-scaled dragonling. Lupus groans…

Then a part-mewl and screech sounds out from even deeper into the cave.

Sighing, she walks more into the darkness. "C'mon Nozarmus…" It's getting to the point where it **is** really hard to see. Another screech, then he nips at her bare foot. "Ow!" She hisses, and he recoils with a whimper. "Get back to where you were!" She scolds him…

And he goes back without a second's hesitation. Why couldn't the others listen like he did?! Letting out another sigh, she walks back to where she was relaxing earlier, before lying back down. Celestine, Si-el, Kana, and Vella are all sleeping now. Onyx and Sven are curled up around their own gems, and Nozarmus scoots over to Lupus when she lies down. At least she can get some rest in before Ka-da returns.

Kana starts crying, because **of course** he does. Well, there goes that nap...

* * *

**A/N:** It's a slice of life… if your mate is a half-dragon that just laid a half-dozen eggs containing hybrids of Human, Kitsune, and Dragonlings. If you're a pure-blooded Kitsune… and your mate's not-blood sister is the rival beastrace Wolfskin. It's probably the closest I'll ever get to that tag/genre.


	7. Preferences

**Canon Name = Nickname:** Corrin = Lupus. Velouria = Vella. Kaden = Ka-da.

* * *

**Offspring Name**: which species he/she was born as, and his/her primary colors. **Nozarmus**: He is born a dragonling and he has orange scales. **Onyx**: She is born a dragonling and she has white, orange, and blue scales. **Sven**: He is born a dragonling and he has blue scales. **Si-el**: He is born a Kitsune and he has orange fur. **Celestine**: She is born a Kitsune and has blue fur. **Kana**: He is born a human and has orange hair.

* * *

**Consort:** One moment they're sleeping beside you, the next they're scaling (HA!) a cave wall in search for their Dragonstones and Beaststones.

Methinks Kana is going to need help finding his gems/crystals. And I think Si-el and Celestine will start searching for theirs later on… right now, it's just the dragonlings sniffing them out now.

I think Lupus was too taken by surprise to think about actually chiding Sven. Dem dragonlings are gonna teach themselves! Aaaand… maybe it's instinct? The Kitsune/Dragon part of them just knows that this is what they need?

Anyway, I wanted to make them different in more than just what they're gonna be good at later on. I thought that Dragons might make for the most aggressive and dominant-desiring males, but yeah… Sven is going to have to learn that there are certain ones that you should **not** hiss at… or drop gems on from above.

I think Onyx is going to be the adventurous one, considering she crawled into, what should be, an unknown hole. Nozarmus is going to be the 'Mama's boy'... er 'Mama's Dragonling'. Kana will be the 'Mama's boy'.

Si-el is going to act however a kit acts. Then there is Celestine, hm...

* * *

Poke, poke, nudge… Lupus lazily opens her eyes at the newest disturbance. She lets out a yawn as she looks to her side, where the trio of dragonlings tend to nap. Sven and Onyx are still asleep, so it's Nozarmus gently nudging… no, he's trying to climb up, but his claws aren't giving him any leverage. Working her arm around the multiple sleeping offspring, Lupus gently scoops him up and puts him on her chest. "What's the matter, Nozarmus?" She whispers. He scoots over her skin some more before settling down so close, that he could almost touch her chin if he stretched as far as he could. He yawns, stretches, and falls back asleep.

Out of all the dragonlings, Nozarmus has proven to be the most needy for attention. Yet, that need for attention doesn't compare to Si-el, Celestine, or Kana. Still, Lupus finds it rather cute when Nozarmus squirms up to her like either of the kits or Kana does. Shuffle, scoot, squirm, he repositions himself and turn towards… her nipple.

Lupus lets out a small yelp when Nozarmus, of all things he could of done… the dragonling starts suckling for her milk. "Sister…?" Vella groggily asks. "What's wrong? Why're you whimpering?"

Oh… she was whimpering? "N-Nozarmus…" She does, in fact, whimper. When she feels a second type of liquid hitting her skin, she knew that he wasn't doing this right. "Nozarmus!" She chides him, causing the dragonling to startle. Yep… his little teeth ripped into her. A mixture of milk, saliva, and blood slowly runs down. She glares at Nozarmus, who flinches back and lets out a whimper of his own. She sighs. "You can drink…" She gently nudges him closer, "Just no nipping."

"Remember… they won't know when to stop until you tell them to stop." Vella reminds her.

"Oh… right." Lupus winces when his tongue flicks against her still sensitive skin. He stops mid-flick and turns towards her. "You're fine, just be gentle." He seems to respond with a slow nod, before flicking again… then looking towards her… then another flick. A few minutes pass before he's back to fully suckling, thankfully keeping his teeth away. At least he learns quick. She takes in a deep breath, then squeaks as Kana started suckling on her other nipple.

Lupus looked over at Vella, who was already back asleep. Well… taking advantage of the moment, Lupus closes her eyes and steadies her breathing, might as well **try** and get some sleep in.

* * *

Lupus yawned and stretched out, to which Nozarmus and Kana yawned and stretched. She opened her eyes to see them each lying on one of her breasts, staring right at her. She blinked her eyes… they blinked their eyes. She stuck her tongue out, she got two forked tongues out in response. She narrowed her eyes, they narrowed their eyes. She huffed, they… squeaked. She lets out a small giggle. "Hello you two." She gently coos. Nozarmus lets out a small screech and Kana just openly smiles.

...At least she got some actual sleep in this time. She looks over to Vella, who is **still** quite asleep. Her poor, sleepy Wolfskin sister. The two kits are still suckling her nipples, too… Lupus startles when she feels a tongue flick against her. Kana has scooted up a little further, then he starts tapping one of his hands on her chest. "Yes, Kana?" He… mewled in response.

Kana just mewled.

"So, you have a fair amount of Kitsune in you…" She smiles, "Well, I'm glad that…" He screeched. "And dragon?" He then hummed. "A little of everything, then?" He nods. "And you can understand me?" He hummed… wait.

"Mmm…" He isn't 'humming', because there's no 'h' sound. "Mmm…" But, it doesn't sound like he's just trying to say 'mmm', either.

"Mommy?" She guesses, and he tilts his head. "Mom? Momma?"

"Mmm…" He attempts, but that's all he can seem to do.

"Don't push yourself, Kana…" She starts, but then her stomach growls… Kana growls. Lupus sighs. Nozarmus growls. "Ka-daaa!" She groans, "I'm hungry!" A pause, "Ka-da?" She tilts her head up…

Oh dear, he's out. As in, deep asleep. He is still in his Nine-tails form, but his… nine tails are curled around him, and those three blue spheres are completely dim and just kinda… floating in place. He has his limits, after all.

Doesn't change the fact that she's hungry.

"Kana~? Nozarmus~?" She coos, "Momma needs to get up to get something to eat…" In response, Nozarmus digs his little claws into her skin. Little Kana pouts. "But, I'm huuungry." Lupus whines… then sighs. "Well, too bad. I'm going to put you two next to Vella and I'm going to get something to eat."

"Mmm…" Kana whines.

The son and mother lock eyes, both having that wild red to them… and she sighs again. "**Ka-da!** Wake! Up!"

"Ngh…" The Nine-tails slowly rises, "I… fell asleep?" He stretches, "Huh… oh! It's dinner time!" He looks back into the cave, "I'll be right back!" He dashes off.

"It was dinner time?" She echoes. "Explains why I'm…" Her stomach growls…

Kana growls, Nozarmus growls… and Lupus sighs.

* * *

Ka-da, relatively speaking to his normal sprints, lumbered through the grassy plains. Frankly, he's still quite exhausted from lack of sleep. It's embarrassing, really, to see such an experienced Kitsune that has mastered the Nine-tails form… stumbling around like a kit. Well, it's not **that** bad, but it might as well be. For a moment, he considered dropping down to his Kitsune form, but… Ka-da shakes his head, takes a breath, and 'tones' down his form.

For the first time in years, Ka-da is in his regular Kitsune form, only one tail. He can **feel** the loss in power in his body… but at least he doesn't feel as tired. "Can't believe I gotta do this to get a few kills in…" He gripes, then yawns. "Alright body, let's get this over with…"

* * *

Vella lets out a loud yawn and a great stretch, "Mmm…" She hums, before slowly rising to stretch out other parts. "I feel so relaxed for once." Creak, crack… her stiff bones and muscles lets out small pops as she moves her body around for the first time in **days**… not just scooting over for some food and not just to go out and relieve herself, but actually getting up to move?

Oh, she has never been so grateful in her life.

"Heeey, sister." Lupus lazily calls her out. "Ka-da hasn't returned with food yet…"

"He left?" She tilts her head, before noticing the entrance to the cave isn't being guarded. "Oh." Mewl, mewl, Si-el and Celestine protest Vella getting up. "Hold on, you two…" She gripes, "Need to stretch." A short pause, "Oof… I'm already feeling the lack of training…"

"I know what you mean, there…"

"How long has Ka-da been gone?"

"Uh…" She hums, "An hour?"

"An **hour**?!" Vella echoes, "What **is** taking him so long?"

"I… kinda woke him up from a deep sleep. He was really tired."

"...So we were all asleep?" Vella sighs, before lying back down, much to the appreciation of the two kits. "That is a terrible idea."

"And you don't think I know that?" Lupus quickly counters, to which Kana and Nozarmus growls **at** Vella. "Hee hee…" She starts giggling. "It seems Kana and Nozarmus **really** like me."

Vella shoots a glare at Lupus… to which Si-el and Celestine lets out a small yip at Lupus. "And it seems Si-el and Celestine **really** likes me."

The two sisters start hearing shuffling as Onyx and Sven distance themselves from the others… and each other. "And there are the two lonely ones."

"I'm… back…" Ka-da huffs as he wearily drops a… rather small deer. "Oof." One of the first things that Lupus notices is that he is in the normal Kitsune form… like what Silky has.

"Ka-da!" She exclaims.

"Just… tired." He waves off her concern, before shifting back. "Need… rest. Save me a… few bites."

Vella and Lupus share a look. Poor Ka-da… Lupus knew he was probably getting the least amount of rest, with him being on constant guard duty, but she didn't know it was getting this bad for him. "I'll feed them if you want to stand guard." Vella supplied.

"How'd you know I was gonna ask something like that?" Lupus asked.

She sniffed with a smile, "I know you very well, sister. But first, we should eat." Her ears twitch as the sound of nibbling echoes… both Onyx and Sven are taking really tiny bites out of the deer.

"Nozarmus, if you want to, go ahead." The half-dragon nudges him on, to which he lets out a small screech and waddles over to the deer. Lupus closes her eyes and sighs, she's going to try and stomach it raw for once… if only to make sure Ka-da doesn't have to do anything. "Alright Kana, momma needs to get up."

"Mmm…" He sounds out again, refusing to leave the rise of her breast.

"Open up, sister." She hears Vella call her out as she brings a slice to her. For the sake of not having to move Kana, Lupus opens her mouth and lets herself be fed by Vella. Ew… gross… slick with blood… but Lupus downs it, anyway.

The whole den is going to feel a whole lot better once the kits and Kana become even a little independant…

* * *

**A/N:** Another day of parenting. It looks like Nozarmus has more 'human' going on in him then before. Or, maybe it's because he has more 'kit' in him. Either way, he is acting more dependent on Lupus than Onyx and Sven.

The offspring have taken sides, too. Nozarmus and Kana are with Lupus, while Si-el and Celestine are with Vella. Onyx and Sven are on the spectator's circle. And hopefully, Lupus can teach her two that her stomach growling isn't the same as actual growling.

Regardless, I'm liking how these offspring are coming out, it's kinda new for me to get their characteristics out, since they can't talk. That, and I have little experience with baby… dogs. Not humans, just puppies, er, a puppy.


	8. The Earliest of Brotherly Bonds

**Canon Name = Nickname:** Corrin = Lupus. Velouria = Vella. Kaden = Ka-da.

* * *

**Offspring Name:** which species he/she was born as, and his/her primary colors. **Nozarmus**: He is born a dragonling and he has orange scales. **Onyx**: She is born a dragonling and she has white, orange, and blue scales. **Sven**: He is born a dragonling and he has blue scales. **Si-el**: He is born a Kitsune and he has orange fur. **Celestine**: She is born a Kitsune and has blue fur. **Kana**: He is born a human and has orange hair.

* * *

**Half-beastdragonsoul2013:** Yep, pretty much.

* * *

**Consort:** Ah, inspiration… I needed some of that for this chapter, since I was kinda… bleh. Anyhoo…

That sounds like a good idea. Ka-da has been having it rough since Lupus's pregnancy, more because of the human aspects of it. And since the offspring are starting to become a bit more independent, that means Lupus's and Vella's time is freed up a bit, which would easily allow Ka-da to get some much needed rest.

Especially since no-one is really saying 'mama' a lot. It'd be interesting to see what all the first words are going to be.

...Considering that Ka-da usually only refers to Lupus as 'mate', I think it would be rather humorous for one of them to start saying 'mate' first. Other than that? 'Vella' and 'Lupus' are probably the next two likely… or 'sister'. Or, at the very least, a one syllable version of those names.

* * *

It's been several more weeks and the kits, Nozarmus, and Kana are finally starting to go about on their own. Si-el and Celestine are having short and relatively gentle play fights. Nozarmus and Kana typically crawl around a bit before lying down next to each other. Onyx and Sven are generally keeping their distance from everyone… including each other. That just must be how dragonlings are 'supposed' to act? Still, she can't help but want them to play around with the others…

Must be the human side of her.

Anyway, while they are still dependent on Lupus and Vella, at least they're not needing to crawl over them the entire day… every day. The two sisters can get up and stretch for a bit. Just… not too far, or else they'll start crying or mewling. Especially Kana. Their growing independence also means that Ka-da has been getting actual sleep in, so now he can properly stay alert, in his Nine-tails form, as well as get larger animals in.

Si-el has started nibbling on meat, as is Kana, but it seems Kana has a preference of **not** eating raw meat, like Lupus… and since he's also wanting more than just mother's milk, that means he needs another source of food. Which, thankfully, Lupus already had Ka-da ask for during his latest visit with her family. 'Baby' food.

Which basically seems to be pre-chewed food.

…

Humans are weird.

Still, Kana almost rips into this mush with great interest. "Hey, Ka-da?" Lupus suddenly asks, seeing as the Nine-tails is curled up at the entrance.

"Yes, mate?" He lazily responds.

"How about you take an actual nap? Let Vella and me handle watching the den?" Poor Ka-da still hasn't gotten any proper sleep in yet.

"I… can handle it." Stubborn as ever, it seems.

"Sister~?" Lupus sings.

"Yes, sister?"

"Would you mind dragging Ka-da over here?" She flashes a wicked smile.

"Of course!" Vella nods, much to Ka-da's complaints.

"I said, I… hey!" He struggles as Vella effortlessly picks him up. Wolfskin do have the high ground when it comes to raw strength, so the second Vella has Ka-da in her grip, he might as well give up. "Let. Me. Go!"

She does, in fact, let him go… but only after he's within arm's reach of Lupus, to which she grabs him, instead. "Heeeey, Ka-da…" She coos.

"As the alpha," He starts… before letting out a whimper as Lupus strokes his fur. "I… suppose I could let it slide this time."

Lupus smiles at Vella, who takes up Ka-da's previous spot… and soon after, Si-el and Celestine sort of stumble their way over to Vella. "You're tense…" Lupus plainly states. "And very stubborn."

"Can't change that easily, mate." He offers no real protest as her fingers dig into his body whilst stroking his fur.

"You still **need** sleep." She counters, "So, let your mate cuddle you to sleep!"

"That's not how…" He pauses, "Oh, hey… uh, Kana?"

"Ah…" The tiny boy replies. While he has learned some more sounds, he has yet to form an actual word yet.

"Nnn…?" Nozarmus soon replies.

"Eee," Goes Kana… to which the other simply lets out a weak hiss, but it doesn't seem to be an 'aggressive' hiss, since it didn't bother Kana.

"When will they use their stones for the first time?" Lupus asks.

A slight shrug follows, "Not sure. Within a year."

"Still so fluffy~" She sings as she starts rubbing his ears with her hands, and while her legs rub against the length of his tail.

"Mmm…" Whatever protest he had earlier is completely gone. "Okay… maybe I did need this."

"I'm glad you agree." Lupus buries her face into his fur. "Fluffy cuddles… fluddles!"

"Fluddles?" Vella echoes from her spot.

"Sounds better than cufflies." She responds… getting a 'females…' from Ka-da. "Hey, better watch your mouth. Because **I** got **you** in **my** grasp right now." She sticks her tongue out, not that he can...

"You're sticking your tongue out, aren't you?" He asks.

How?! "Mayfbe. Fwhy?" Her tongue is still out.

"...Kana is sticking his tongue out." He sighs.

"Bffffftt…" Kana follows up.

"Ssss…" Nozarmus adds, flicking his forked tongue at Ka-da.

"You are teaching our offspring some **weird** things, mate." Lupus shrugs and resumes stroking his fur. "Mmm…" Giggling, Lupus bundles up closer to Ka-da, then closes her eyes. Oh, he is so warm…

* * *

Lupus awakes to the feeling of something crawling around near her breasts. It starts nudging something at her breasts, slowly making its way from between her breasts and Ka-da's back. In response, Lupus scoots a little back, causing the 'something' to move faster. She looks down to see Kana's head popping up, a smile on his face. "Hey…" She coos, causing the small boy to giggle. "Did you have a good nap?"

"Ah-up." Lupus tilts her head, Kana tilts his head…

That's the first time he's managed more than one 'sound' in a word, as there was a short pause in the middle. Crimson red eyes meet duller red. Kana's growing, at least… maybe not as fast as the others, but he's growing. "Ksssst…" Nozarmus comes from the head-side of Lupus, staring at Kana. The former is just slightly larger than the latter. Lupus has noticed that his scales are slowly becoming a more vivid orange. Nozarmus nuzzles his head against Lupus's chin.

"Ksssh." Kana replies with whatever Nozarmus was 'saying'. He crawls up to his draconic brother and rests in between him and Lupus.

"Ngh!" Then Ka-da grunts as Nozarmus's hind feet-claws make contact with his back. Sure, it isn't enough to draw blood, but it's enough to be a 'pinching' feeling. "Hey!" Ka-da harshly whispers…

Causing Nozarmus to whimper and shrink back closer to Lupus. "He didn't mean to, Ka-da."

"Tch, he needs to be aware of how fast he's growing."

"Well, isn't someone Mr. Grumpy?"

"...I was having a good dream." Ka-da gripes.

To which it got Lupus's interest, "About what?"

"Having a full hamlet again." He simply replies. "More Kitsune started showing up."

"Ka-da…"

"We'll get there in time, mate." He sighs.

"Nnnl." Nozarmus scoots over to Ka-da and starts flicking his forked tongue on his fur.

"Kaaah…" Kana follows up, mimicking Nozarmus's actions. Lupus has a distinct feeling that these two will be very close to each other.

"...Yeah, we'll get there in time." He mutters, more to himself as he curls up and falls back asleep.

Lupus looks at his already sleeping form over, because of the difficulties presented by Lupus's human side during pregnancy, 'skipping one' heat cycle meant skipping another attempt at mating. Which lead to another. Lupus is amazed by his willpower, honestly. He **has** to be extremely tense by now. Lupus knows that she's 'really feeling' it. Though, another problem is that, due to the human blood in them, it is taking the offspring longer to stop relying on mother's or Vella's milk. There's just simply no way to support another batch of eggs. There's not enough teats to go around.

…

Maybe she should find another way to 'mate', no… just have sex. Kinda like how she did with Seta that one day…

Maybe she should visit Seta?

* * *

Lupus yawns as she wakes up from her second nap, with Ka-da still snoozing away. Well, it's only fair… he **has** been lacking sleep lately. Looking slightly downward, she can see that Kana and Nozarmus are curled around each other, with Kana's head touching Nozarmus's tail… and with Nozarmus's head touching… wait.

Since when did Kana have a tail?

Lupus rubs her eyes and looks again. A tiny draconic scaled tail has 'sprouted' from Kana's backside… **and** a shorter Kitsune furry tail is beside it.

…

Kana has two tails right now, and Nozarmus is using the fluffy Kitsune one as a little pillow. "Hey, psst… Ka-da." She whispers, which causes the two brothers to stir, but the alpha remains sleeping. "Oh, forget it… Hey! Vella!" She instead calls out…

Who is also asleep. Vella is **supposed** to be keeping watch!

Looking around, Lupus can see that Si-el and Sven are on opposite sides of the cave and Onyx is… Onyx is… "Onyx?" She calls out. "**Onyx**!"

"Nnn…" Kana yawns.

"Ssst…?" Nozarmus follows up.

"Mama needs to get up." Lupus whispers as she rises. Kana looks at Nozarmus, Nozarmus looks at Kana… and the two gets up and starts following Lupus. "No, please… I…" she then sighs, "Alright, c'mere." She then stoops down and carefully picks the two up, "Now, where…" She **was** going to ask where they wanted to rest, but they made that decision on their own as they crawled up her arms and lied down on her shoulders. "That's a little high…" Lupus then lowers herself to all fours, with the two brothers slightly readjusting to keep their balance. "Let's go find Onyx." She hums as she starts crawling.

Thankfully her skin is naturally reinforced with the power of her Dragonstone… like how Keaty's skin is akin to iron.

As Lupus crawled along the cave floor and sniffed the air. She can pick up Onyx's scent… which has just the tiniest hint of spicy…

And in that moment, she knew exactly which offspring caused her to have that craving for Jalapeno pasta. Her stomach burns from the mere thought of that meal. Kana clicks his tongue and Nozarmus lets out a weak hiss. Oh, if only she knew what they were saying. "Onyx?" Lupus calls out as she reaches the edge of the cave, right where Vella is **sleeping**!

"Hnnn?" And up pops Onyx's head, curled up out of sight and next to Vella's fur.

"Oh…" Lupus sighs in relief. Well, that could have gone worse… Lupus turns around and goes back towards her original spot, then it **does** get worse.

Onyx starts crying.

"Wha…" Ka-da bolts up.

"I'm awake…" Vella is as quick to get up. "Aw, what's the matter, Onyx?" She coos as she picks up the growing dragonling. Onyx is slightly larger than Nozarmus…

"Alright, I'm rested… I want my watch spot back." Ka-da gripes as he walks over. "But… I'd like to do that again, mate." He smiles. "Alright, get up, Vella."

She huffs, "Fine."

And all Lupus could do was smile at it all. "Llllnnn…." Kana **mewls**.

"Sss…" Nozarmus hisses.

* * *

**A/N:** And so enters Kana's and Nozarmus's brotherly bonding... and the hint for Lupus's, uh, 'reading material' from Seta.


	9. Going to On a Ball

**A/N:** There is a bit of a time-skip this chapter. Also… we get to see more child units! And... since it has been such a long while since I've updated it, and considering the number of changes there are between this AU and 'Corrin, of the Wolfskin'... There is no 'Dragon Squad', Lupus's parents are Sumeragi/Mikoto.

Lastly... this is being split into two parts.

* * *

**Pairings:** Corrin/Kaden. Subaki/Reina. Sakura/Kaze. Ryoma/Scarlet. Takumi/Oboro. Hinata/Rinkah. Saizo/Orochi. Kagero/Azama.

* * *

**Canon Name = Nickname:** Corrin = Lupus. Velouria = Vella. Keaton = Keaty. Setsuna = Seta. Hinoka = Hina. Sakura = Saku. Subaki = Superman. Ryoma = Red. Selkie = Silky. Kaden = Ka-da. Orochi = Viper. Takumi = Tako.

* * *

**Offspring Name:** which species he/she was born as, and his/her primary colors. **Nozarmus**: He is born a dragonling and he has orange scales. **Onyx**: She is born a dragonling and she has white, orange, and blue scales. **Sven**: He is born a dragonling and he has blue scales. **Si-el**: He is born a Kitsune and he has orange fur. **Celestine**: She is born a Kitsune and has blue fur. **Kana**: He is born a human and has orange hair.

* * *

**Consort:** Yes, as stubborn and dedicated as he can be, Ka-da still needs proper sleep.

Hey! They're reeeaaalllyyy trying!

A human baby with a dragon tail and a kitsune tail… that's about as definite proof for his 'Balanced Hybrid' as it could probably get.

* * *

Lupus has never been keen on certain types of events. Large social gatherings is a huge no-no in her 'book'. Custom-fitted clothing is a second. She prefers sleeveless shirts and shorts. Those 'spices' in foods is another. Oh, then there is the 'etiquette' problem. However, even all of these don't even hold a candle to the number one rule that should never **ever** be broken.

No. Shoes.

So, understandably, Lupus was all fine with her family coming over to Ka-da's hamlet for a visit. She hesitantly accepted 'doing a Princess thing' once in a while, and this time it was a 'ball'. Which is a human word for a 'party'... which is an event where people have fun.

Yeah, she still has a lot to learn.

Her mother stands beside Lupus as the half-dragon is breastfeeding both Kana and Nozarmus… since whatever Kana does, Nozarmus does. Vella is lying down in the cave while feeding the other four offspring, with Seta telling her the same information that Mikoto is **trying** to explain. Lastly, Red is informing Ka-da of this news.

The rest of her family has the luxury of being on standby for whenever one of the others lose their patience.

"Does it really have to be now?" Lupus asked… again. "Can't it wait until Ka-da's offspring are older?" A pause, "Oh, but you're **my** baby, little Kana…" She coos.

"Luuuuu!" Kana exclaims.

"Puuuuu!" Nozarmus follows up. Now, that's something that Lupus never expected… as for whatever reason, neither Kana or Nozarmus ever says the 's' in Lupus… making it sound like how Silky gave her the nickname Lu-pu.

"I'm afraid so, daughter. We won't have another open moment in everyone's schedule for a while."

"Everyone? Who is coming?" Lupus tilts her head… which causes Kana to tilt his head… which means that Nozarmus is tilting his head.

"It's meant to be an anniversary for…"

"Ann...i...ver...sary?"

"A yearly party." Lupus refrained from griping with 'well, why didn't you just say so in the first place!' "The Nohrian royalty, Ice Tribe chieftain and his twin daughters, the Fire Tribe chieftain and his daughter, the Wind Tribe chieftain and his son… and a number of other people. Oh, this will be a wonderful event."

"And what about my offspring?" She asks, "I need… well, both me and Vella need to be with them."

"Vella and I…" Her mother just barely mutters. "Daughter, there are plenty of staff available to watch over children, we have plenty of wet nurses that can breastfeed. Yours aren't the only ones that will be taken care of."

Vella starts snickering, low enough to where Mikoto doesn't pick up, "Sister? If she thinks the offspring can be taken care of… then let her."

"They…" She was about to continue, but… oh… oh. Lupus recognizes **that** look. Both her and Vella knows that whoever has the 'luck' of watching over her offspring will have their hands full. "Okay… I trust your people, mother."

"Good. I'm glad." Mikoto smiles, mostly oblivious to how much chaos just might come out of this. "Now, we need to start with clothes…"

"Huh?" She asks out loud.

"You're going to need a proper dress, a deep clean, makeup, pedicure, manicure…" She starts listing off.

"Why?" Lupus sniffs herself, looks herself over and… "What are the last two things?"

"Getting both your fingernails and toenails properly groomed." How can she smile while saying that?!

"...okay?"

"And I also know the perfect place to get you a pair of shoes and…"

"Uh-oh." Vella cuts her off.

"What's wrong?" Mikoto.

"You said the 'S' word."

"I did not! I would never use such profanity." A misunderstanding between the two… Mikoto thinks she's referring to 'shit', but Vella means 'shoe'.

"I am **not** wearing shoes!" Lupus finally exclaims. "Forget it! Nope! Not happening!"

"It'll only be for a few hours…"

"No. Shoes."

"You can't walk around bare-foot during such an important event."

"Why not?"

"It's a social standard."

"Like that terrible tasting etiquette?"

Another sigh, "Etiquette is not a seasoning…" She rises up, "One moment, please… Hinoka!"

However, instead of Hina… Red walks in. "My apologies, I just switched out with her."

"Oh, that's okay… Sakura!" Even mother seems to be at her wit's end.

"Y-Yes?" Saku slowly walks in.

"Do allow me a break and try to smooth out why my dear daughter needs to wear shoes."

"I am **not** wearing shoes!"

* * *

Now, while Mikoto was handling Lupus, Vella, and the offspring. Ryoma had to explain similar things to Kaden. "Kaden." A simple, firm greeting.

"Red."

"I don't like this anymore than you do, but as royalty, there are things that need to be done." His tone is absolute.

But Kaden didn't become the best by letting others be on top of him. That'd ruin his fur! "You've already got two princes and two princesses… why do you need my mate, too?"

"Because she **is** a Princess."

"And why me?"

"Because of your relation to her, you are part of the Royal family via marriage."

"We aren't married." Well… it's the truth.

"Your children are a combination of you and her. Your children are royalty, you are the father of these children… you need to attend." Straight to the point, which is usually how Kaden prefers it.

"They are too young to bring." But, he is an alpha first and foremost. "If this would wait a few weeks, then at least Si-el, Sven, Celestine, Onyx, and Nozarmus would have matured enough."

"We have experienced people on staff that can take care of your children."

"Human children or hybrids? Their needs are different… even Kana doesn't follow 'normal' human requirements."

"We can prepare our caregivers if you can provide the information."

"Raw meat?"

"Not a problem."

"Plenty of space?"

"There are a number of play areas they can use."

"A high tolerance for ear-grating noises?"

"...they are used to loud crying." He falters.

"Sharpened claws and teeth?"

"They can be outfitted with protective clothing."

"Sudden outbursts of exploration?"

"Every child goes through that."

"A need to establish dominance?"

Red really hesitates on that one, "...and what might happen if that isn't fulfilled?"

"If they think they can handle the challenge? Violence. If the caretaker proves they're stronger? Submission."

"We have a few particularly strong caretakers."

Kaden takes a moment to think it over, then nods, "Alright… they better be in perfect health when we can pick them up."

"We offer only the best." A pause, "Besides, this will give them a chance to meet their relatives."

"There's more family?!"

"Scarlet's and my son, Takumi's and Oboro's son, Saizo's and Orochi's son, Subaki's and Reina's daughter, Hinata's and Rinkah's son," He starts listing off, "Kagero's and Azama's will be too young, so her daughter will be in a separate care room, as will Kaze's and Sakura's daughter."

"That's… a lot."

"And those are just from the ones you personally know. As I said, there are many other children being taken care of during this ball."

"I don't know Rinkah… or Reina."

"Erm, you personally know at least one of the parents."

Kaden shakes his head, "Alright, what else is there to this… ball?"

He shifts around uncomfortable, "The dress code."

"Dresses have codes?"

"No, I mean… what you will have to wear."

"What?! My fur mattes when I wear clothing!" He gestures at his pristinely groomed fur across his body, "There's a reason why I wear so little of it."

Red nods, "And I'll make sure you can get in with the bare minimum."

"And how much is that?"

"I'm confident I can at least manage to get you into a more of a kimono-style outfit." A sheepish smile, "Kaden, almost every leader will be present for this. There will be many politically powerful people. So many different lifestyles will come together under one roof. First impressions are the most important, so we all are going to wear the best."

"And nothing is better than my divine fur." Kaden boasts… but is it a boast if it's true?

Red sighs, "Hinoka! Your turn!" He walks off.

And up comes Hina. "Oh boy… where did he leave off at?"

"He insulted me… so, what… I **have** to wear things that will ruin my glorious appearance?"

Recognition shines in her eyes, "Oh… the dress code." She takes a breath, "Might as well describe what all is going to be worn." She glances down.

"Don't say it."

"...like shoes."

* * *

The explanations and reasoning took so long that it continued throughout most of the trip back to Shirasagi. What could've been said once to a child raised as a human had to be explained at least a dozen times for Lupus, Ka-da, and Vella. Incorrect assumptions, lack of knowledge on phrases and terms, offspring distracting them, and a general near inability to simply comprehend what was being told. However, persistence and different approaches eventually paid off and now the three have a decent understanding of what to do and what not to do.

The next challenge is making sure they **remember** all of it, because Lupus already proved to have… not the best memory, especially to the 'human' things.

Which is why the ball is going to spiral down in several places.

* * *

Lupus is taken into a 'dressing' room, where there are several women she doesn't know. "I'll be back in an hour or two, dear…" And mother leaves her alone with them. Lupus looks at these three women.

They are trying their best to hide their disgust. "Princess Corrin." One of them speaks up, with a disgusting smell on her. "We are to prepare you for the ball." And what is all of that… stuff on her?

"We shall start with your bath." The second one says as she walks closer.

"Please, come with us." The three approach and lead Lupus along.

"I washed in the lake before I left, I'm fine." She huffs.

The three share a look, disbelief. "With all due respect, your body looks filthy."

"It's fine." She looks herself over, "Oh, I suppose I got some dirt on me on the way…"

"Your hair has twigs in it." The second one points out.

"I like the smell of trees."

"Your teeth has… blood?"

"It does?" She licks her teeth, "Oh yeah… my ma…" Lupus coughs, "My… husband brought in a deer, it was fresh and ready to eat!"

One of them gags, the other holds it in, "What did he do, serve it raw?"

"Yes!"

"...I need to have a moment to myself." One of them women quickly leaves, her face is tinted green.

"Please, can we start?"

Lupus huffs again, "Fine." She lets herself be led through the halls, and into a room with a 'tub', it is rather large, like it can fit a few people.

"I'll get the bath ready." One of the two says.

"Your clothes, milady." The other says as she holds her arm out.

"Huh?"

"Please, remove your clothes for this."

"...You aren't going to throw them away, are you?" She loves her tattered shirt!

She looks disgusted, "I won't."

Lupus smiles, "Alright…" She slips out of her shirt and shorts, not that she had anything else on. Then the woman squeaks and drops them. "What's wrong?"

"Is that a… slug?!" She points at a small creature, gently moving around Lupus's shirt.

"Oh, that's where he went!" Lupus bends down and lets him move on her hand, "Sister brought him to me… isn't he awesome?"

And now she looks sick. "Gods… please, get that out of here."

"What?! No way!"

"Princess Corrin, you can't bring a slug around with you!"

"Why not?"

"It's… disgusting! It's leaving a slime trail on you!"

"So?"

"Lady Corrin, please…"

Lupus stares her down, before stooping down to her shirt and letting the slug slither back in. "Lady Corrin, your bath is ready." The other lady comes in, oblivious to the recent exchange.

Lupus shrugs and enters the… "Hot!" She removes her foot from the water. "Why is it so hot?!"

"Hot water makes it easier to clean."

"Make it cold! Cold is refreshing!" She crosses her arms. "Lakes aren't ever hot."

"Lady Corrin, the water needs to be hot. You need to be properly cleaned."

"It's going to take a long time to get you all prepared, the sooner you start, the sooner we can finish."

And being finished soon will be nice… Lupus gives in, and steps into the much too hot water. "Thank you, Lady Corrin." The two scramble around, "I'll get her hair."

"And I'll get her body!" Lupus sinks into the water and tries to ignore the two...

* * *

Vella looks at her half-dragon sister, and attempts to resist the urge to laugh. She looks **ridiculous**! Some sort of red and white dress that only covers her top half, a thing on her lower half called a 'skirt', these stupidly long piece of cloth that rise up to her knees called 'stockings', a pair of pure-white gloves. Her hair has been pulled up and into a 'bun', she has this light-red dry 'makeup' on several points on her face… which has also been 'powdered'. And even despite it being 'the worst thing possible', Vella can't lie… Lupus has a cute pair of 'flat-bottoms' on.

The frown, with red 'lipstick' on her lips, simply makes it the 'cherry in the center'.

"You think this is funny now… you're next." She finally says.

"...huh?"

An outright **evil** smile forms, "I made sure they know to give you as much attention as they did me… because I **knew** you would start laughing."

"I didn't laugh!" Then it all falls apart… as a chuckle escapes her. "That doesn't count!"

"Vella~? I love you with all of the sisterly affection I can manage… and have fun!"

"Sister… please tell me you aren't serious. I'm covered in fur!"

"I loooove you, sister~." Lupus practically sings as she starts walking out.

"Vella… is it?" A woman approaches her. "Oh dear… this **will** be a lot of work. Come, dear. It's a good thing the royal family arrives early… I think I'm going to need to spend several hours just cleaning you up."

"Lupus! Don't do this to me!" Nope, gone. Vella gripes, but follows through with what she was told… so she trails this woman.

* * *

"...At least this isn't pressing down on my fur." Kaden observes as he looks himself over in the mirror. It's bad… but tolerable, well except for one fact. "My beautiful tail… can't you cut a hole in this for my tail?"

"The way this is designed… it would require almost a complete rework. The patterns would become mismatched." The butler guy tells him.

"My tail is my most treasured part of my already glorious beauty! I **need** my tail out!" Oh, it feels so wrong.

"Sir Kaden… your outfit needs to line up with both Princess Corrin's and Madame Velouria's."

"I'm just asking for a hole big enough to fit my tail through!"

"And I'm stating that the vivid orange from your tail will clash with the outfit."

"Uh… my face? Ears? Why not hide those while you're at it, too?!"

"There are exceptions…"

"So make one for my tail!" Ugh, what was that one guy's name? "**Kake**!"

The green-hair Ninja guy appears, "...It's Kaze." He quietly corrects, "May I be of service?"

"I want a hole in this for my tail."

"The color will clash with the set-up that Queen Mikoto has established!" The butler continues to claim.

"I'd rather hide my face and ears than my tail!"

"Sir, you are being…" Rip, cut. Within the blink of an eye, Kaze sliced a hole just large enough for Kaden's tail to slip through.

"One moment…" Kaze speaks before anything else happens. He grabs the torn cloth and expertly stitches it back on… but making it more like a flap. "There. The design remains, and Kaden can also have his tail show."

"The colors…"

"Sir, that is enough. This is as much a compromise as you will get. You will not deny Lord Kaden his tail." He turns his gaze back to Kaden, "Shall we leave?"

First, and most importantly, Kaden pushes his tail out of the flap, then nods, "Yes… please." But not before leveling an intense glare at this butler guy. "Thank you, Ka**z**e."

"Not a problem… and do excuse them. The designers are incredibly picky with their works." Kaze gives him an apologetic smile, before going neutral again.

"**Nope**!** Not happening**!" Without any warning, Vella comes storming down the hall… with three different women trying to stop her by holding onto her legs. Kaden raises an eyebrow at the bitch's current state… she's been recently cleaned, though her fur has been dried. She, at least, has her nipples and core covered, but… "They're trying to take my fur!" She rounds on Kaden. "If it weren't for Lupus, I'd snap them in half!"

"It's just a haircut! Not all of it!"

"Please ma'am…" Two of the women beg.

"I'll tolerate being cleaned, I'll cover my teats and my core… but you are **not**." She kicks one off, "Cutting." Raises up a leg and swings it in such a way that the woman holding onto the other woman is flung off, "My fur!" The third one is sent flying… thankfully, no serious injuries. She huffs, and levels a look at Kaden, "And now… I'm going outside." She storms out.

"Lord Kaden… should I try and reason with her?" Even he seems hesitant to follow right now.

Kaden casts his mind back to other scenarios where the Wolfskin was as angry as she is now, then shakes his head, "She won't kill you… but you might end up with a few broken bones… at the least."

"Understood, Lord Kaden."

"Where's my ma…" Kaden coughs, "My 'wife'? I want to see her."

A nod, "This way." He starts walking and Kaden follows.

And to think, the ball hasn't even started yet.

* * *

Reina wasn't too sure why Lord Ryoma specifically asked **her** to help watch over Princess Corrin's children. All he really told her was that she would be needed to 'assert dominance'. "Mama?" The young Caeldori reaches up to her… for someone so young, she's managed to get an impressive grasp on walking, talking, and many other things that young children should be doing… not babies approaching that youth stage.

It's clear her husband's perfection has rubbed off onto her.

"Hello, Caeldori." She gently picks up her blue-hair daughter.

"Uncly Reeoma said I'm gonna meet Aunt Corn's children!" Well… she's got a grasp on **most** things.

Reina nods, "Yes, you will dear… Aunt Corrin has six. Three sons and three daughters."

She gasps, "Six? That's like…" She looks at her hands and starts counting, "Five more family than I have!"

Reina smiles, "Yes, there are a lot of brothers and sisters."

"Mama? When will I get brothers and sisters? I want five more, too!"

Oh, she still has much to learn, though… "Daughter? Aunt Corrin is different when it comes to children… it'll be many years before you can have five more." **If** she can… Reina is older than most of the mothers here. Only Mikoto has more years. The truth is, Reina might not be able to get pregnant five more times… she'd need to birth twins and triplets to achieve that. "But, I'll let Subaki know, okay? I'm sure we can get a brother or sister for you."

Caeldori tilts her head, "Aunt Corn is… different?" She echoes. "But… okay! I can wait!" Gods, she is so adorable. Reina may have an affinity for battle, but there's no doubt that Caeldori trumps even the most satisfying kills she's ever made. "Mama? Will other children be here?"

A nod, "Caeldori, dear? This room we're in? There are going to be so many children that if you aren't careful… you'll find it hard to walk a few steps without bumping into one."

Another gasp and her eyes turn wide as she looks around, "But, if I'm like… this big." She wiggles a bit and Reina lets her down. Caeldori turns once, then starts pointing in seemingly random spots. "There must be like… dozens of children coming! Am I right? Mama, did I guess right?"

"That is very close, dear. Including you and Aunt Corrin's, there will be a total of eleven children… well, there are actually thirteen, but Midori and Mitama are too young to be in here."

"A total of eleven? And… a dozen is twelve." She starts using her fingers again, "Uh-oh… mama?"

"Yes, dear?"

"I don't have eleven fingers."

Gods, the innocence of youth, "That's right, people only have ten."

"And eleven is one more than ten?"

"That is correct."

Caeldori scrunches her face while going into deep thought. "There will be more children than I have fingers!" She exclaims, "That's a lot of friends!"

"And all of those children will be different…"

"Because… everyone is… unique. Right, mama?"

"That is right. Everyone is special in their own right." Reina looks over the room… where **is** that caretaker?

* * *

"Sister… are you **sure** you don't want to attend all of the ball?" Flora asks Felicia as she looks over her 'nanny' supplies.

"I'm sure, sister! There's going to be all of those cute, young children!" Felicia quickly nods… her head band popping off. "Oh…" She pouts, "I thought that was on correctly."

Their father chuckles, "Perhaps you'll find a suitor of your own here, Flora. Then you can have the joy of raising your own."

"Father!" Flora flushes. "I'm simply concerned that it will be looked down upon if our family isn't always present."

"We are under a new Nohr, daughter. Queen Elise has proven to be infinitely better than the late King Garon ever was or could be. We can afford to relax in certain areas now." A pause, before Kilma's smile grows, "Besides… wasn't there that one Butler you've grown…"

"Father! Not out loud!" She desperately cuts him off.

"Huh? What about a Butler?" Felicia asks.

"It's nothing, sister. He's just making things up to embarrass me." Flora huffs, a puff of cold mist leaving her mouth.

Kilma leans over to Felicia, much to Flora's 'horror', "She is interested in Jakob." He leans back into his seat.

"**Father**!"

"Jakob? Oh… oh!" Felicia nods, "He is pretty nice, isn't he? Wait! Hold on… so when you sneaked out that one night…?"

Flora grabs a nearby pillow, shoves her face in it, and screams as loud as she can into the fluff, "**I'm not listening**!"

* * *

Kana and Nozarmus looked around this new place, a huge place. Among the rest of their brothers and sisters, there is a woman with deep lines drawn into her face, she has blue hair… there is also a little girl with similar hair. "Hello." The tall woman says. "My name is Reina, this is my daughter, Caeldori." She points at herself, then the girl. "And you all are Princess Corrin's children, aren't you?"

"Cor…?" Kana starts.

"...rin?" Nozarmus finishes.

Reina then coughs, "Pardon me… Lupus."

The two bond brothers start beaming. "Luuuuu~!" Nozarmus starts.

"Puuuuu!" Kana finishes.

Si-el has already taken to one corner, with Sven holds another corner. Celestine sorta just stares at Caeldori, while Onyx is cruising around. For what it's worth… they are all currently in their human forms.

"Hello all!" Caeldori exclaims, "My name is Caeldori! What's yours?" She looks at the bond brothers.

"Ka...na." Kana puffs his chest.

"Noz...zy." Nozarmus copies Kana.

"Kana? Nozzy?" She nods, "It's nice to meet you both." She looks at the one staring at her, "And your name?" No response.

"Dear?" Reina asks, "They may be too young to talk."

"But… I can talk."

"Yes dear, you learned very quickly, but not everyone is like that."

She nods, "Oh right, everyone is… unique!"

"S-Sorry I'm late!" Another woman comes walking in… kinda pink hair that just rolls down. "I lost track of my hairbrush and a lot of the spare toys I brought from the Ice Tribe and…" She looks around. "Gods… you all are… **adorable**! My name is Felicia, and I'm going to be your nanny today!"

"Wait… Ice Tribe?" Reina looks her over, "Felicia? Aren't you supposed to be attending the ball?"

"I heard about the caretakers, and I knew I had to be here! I love children!"

"Mama? Ice tribe is… in Nohr?" Caeldori asks.

"That's correct, dear… Felicia? This is my daughter, Caeldori."

"It's nice to meet you, miss Felicia of the Ice Tribe."

"Oh my… she's already so polite and smart." Felicia places her bag on the ground to better greet Caeldori…

Mistake number one.

Onyx, upon noticing the sudden new intrusion on the floor, redirects her path towards this new thing. "?" She looks it over. Why isn't it moving? She pokes it with her finger, then grabs the side to pull herself up…

And she tips into it.

"Onyx…" Thankfully, at least this time, Reina is here to notice. She stoops down and grabs the giggling girl out of Felicia's bag. "Felicia? Do keep in mind there are going to be a total of eleven children."

"Oh, pfft… that's not a problem." She says as she rises back up and looks at her.

Mistake number two.

Reina raises her eyebrow with an amused smile, "If you say so." Reina spares a glance at Caeldori, "I'll return shortly… I need to find that other caretaker before the rest get here."

"Don't worry ma'am… I got this!" Felicia exclaims.

This gives Reina no confidence, but she leaves anyway… there are some things she needs to take care of before the ball starts.

"Alright, I brought a lot of things we can do, so…" She pulls out a list with names and descriptions. "Okay, you're Caeldori."

"Yes I am, ma'am! My daddy is Subaki, Princess Sakura's perfect lead retainer."

A nod, "You…" She looks at Onyx, "Are Onyx. She is… Celestine. Easy enough… Si-el… Sven? And finally… Kana and Nozarmus." She reaches down and grabs her bag, "How about something really simple… some coloring books?" She looks around, "Si-el? Sven? Would you care to join us?"

The two males stubbornly remain in their corners. "Hey… nobody's in time-out. You can join us." Caeldori adds, oblivious to why those two are so distant.

"I'll give them some time, first… okay, well Celestine? Onyx?" While Onyx seems content to explore, Celestine moves in closer. "Awesome, now how about you two? Kana and Nozarmus?"

Kana looks at Nozarmus. Nozarmus looks at Kana. They both nod in unison, then start moving forward in perfect sync. Felicia lies out the coloring books in a neat line. "Dragon?" Kana points out.

"Dragon!" Nozarmus echoes.

"Like…?"

"Mama?" The two share a look, then at Felicia.

"Um… I think? This is a more simple interpretation of the Ice Dragon."

"In." Kana.

"Ter." Nozarmus.

"Pre." Kana.

"Ta." Nozarmus.

"Tion?" Kana and Nozarmus.

"That means it's an easy version of it." Caeldori puffs her chest in pride.

Kana tilts his head, Nozarmus tilts his head… Nozarmus mimics Caeldori, Kana copies Nozarmus. Onyx quietly creeps back into Felicia's bag. Celestine reaches out and grabs one of the coloring books. "Alright, let me grab the…" Felicia halts as she feels something very off in her bag.

She's greeted to a scaled head, sharp teeth, and tiny horns. Onyx **hisses**. Felicia startles. "Woah!" Caeldori exclaims. "Um… Onyx?" The dragonling tilts her head, flicks out her forked tongue, then buries herself back into the bag… a small flash of light follows.

Her furry Kitsune form ears are now poking out of the top. "Um, Onyx… I need to get the crayons out." Felicia carefully reaches into the bag.

Scratch… but this wasn't Onyx using her claws on Felicia… that would have been a more ideal outcome, but no. Another mistake to add to the list, because both Sven and Si-el managed to worm their way out of the room… how exactly? Well, it would be poor design if the only opening to a room, besides like a safe room, was a single door. So, with the option of using the front door negated, the two highly independent sons took the next best option… And managed to claw their way out of the window without any glass.

Thank the gods they are on the first floor.

"Uh… Si-el? Sven?!" Felicia finally notices, before appropriately panicking, "Oh no… not good." She races over to the window. "How are they already out of sight?!" She moves over back to the door, but… "Oh… what am I gonna do? I can't leave you all alone…"

"I can watch over them… I'm a good watcher!" Caeldori volunteers.

"But this is a grown-up's task, darling. I can't just…" No, forget it, "Alright, please be careful." Oh, please be a good gamble.


	10. Child's Play(time)

**Canon Name = Nickname:** Corrin = Lupus. Velouria = Vella. Keaton = Keaty. Setsuna = Seta. Hinoka = Hina. Sakura = Saku. Subaki = Superman. Ryoma = Red. Selkie = Silky. Kaden = Ka-da. Orochi = Viper. Takumi = Tako.

* * *

**Offspring Name:** which species he/she was born as, and his/her primary colors. **Nozarmus**: He is born a dragonling and he has orange scales. **Onyx**: She is born a dragonling and she has white, orange, and blue scales. **Sven**: He is born a dragonling and he has blue scales. **Si-el**: He is born a Kitsune and he has orange fur. **Celestine**: She is born a Kitsune and has blue fur. **Kana**: He is born a human and has orange hair.

* * *

**Consort:** *sniffs* And Vella achieved that all on her own! No need for shouting or demands or extended periods of separation. Maybe it was the offsprings who ended up making the difference? Like how Silky was the one who made a difference in the main fic?

And I too… it felt really good to step away from all of the more serious ideas and post something simple. Like, having a situation where the 'S' word actually just refers to 'shoe'.

None shall deny Ka-da his tail!

* * *

Three words come to mind as the ball is about to start. So. Many. Humans. No matter where Lupus looks, there's at least a dozen of them flocking together. To make it worse, there are so few she recognizes. At least Ka-da is beside her…

Vella's missing.

"So…" Ka-da starts, with some sort of dress-thing on.

"Where's Vella?" She shifts around in her own dress.

"Ran off. Knocked her three dressers unconscious."

"Why?"

"She claimed they were trying to take her fur… she was only getting a haircut."

"Oh yeah… that thing." She touches her hair, as it has been 'neatly trimmed'. "How's your fur?"

"...The only thing good about it is that it was a very thorough bath, I've never felt so clean in my life!"

"But now it's being hidden by that… thing."

"Exactly!" He huffs. "So, you managed to avoid getting…?"

"Don't say it." Lupus knows he won't, but she can't help but feel a bit on edge about… 'that'.

"The feet things?"

"Uh-huh." She proudly nods. "And so did you." A smile.

"They realized that they couldn't get anything to match Kitsune paws. How about you?"

She blinks her eyes, "Oh, that would've been easier…"

"Mate… what did you do?"

She looks down at her hand, the one she normally uses as a maw. "I… snapped all of those things apart until they stopped trying." Ka-da sighs. "What? It worked, didn't it?"

He shrugs, "That does sound like something you would do…" He would've continued, but…

"Ah, Princess Corrin… Lord Kaden." New face, a man with a woman next to him. Lupus can literally feel the **cold** coming off of them. "My name is Kilma, leader of the Ice Tribe. This is my daughter, Flora."

"I'm pleased to make your acquaintance, Princess Corrin… Lord Kaden."

The two shifters share a look. "And, you too?" Ka-da slowly responds.

"Yeah…" Lupus looks away, resisting the urge to kick the ground.

"Now, please excuse us… we aren't really make much talk right now. We're to have some… pre-party introductions." Kilma bows, Flora bows. Lupus and Ka-da copies them. Let's just say that Lupus might have already forgotten a lot of the stuff, while Ka-da is trying to not treat this in Kitsune tradition.

"Pre-party meetings?! Mother didn't say anything about that!" Lupus harshly whispers.

"I thought she was supposed to inform us of everything!?" Kaden replies.

"Now what, are we going to have to meet **all** of the…" New scent. Great. Wonderful, even.

"Lady Corrin, Lord Kaden." A single woman approaches… whose muscles can almost be seen through her clothing. "Rinkah, recently promoted chieftain of the Fire Tribe… I've heard a lot about what you've done during the war." She smirks. "Before we all leave, I want to duel you…"

Oh, never mind. Lupus already likes her, "Playtime? Fast and rough? How about… oh, what did Hina call it… wrestling?"

"Heh, sounds better than anything this 'ball' can throw at us." She laughs. "How about you… you in?"

Ka-da looks to his mate, then Rinkah. "I think I'd rather groom my fur after this…"

Rinkah shrugs, "Alright, your loss. See you after…" She walks off, and once she is out of sight? "Hey, watch it!"

"No, you watch where **you're** going!" Another woman, like the last one, she walks in alone… blonde hair. "Oh, hello. Princess Corrin. Lord Kaden. My name is Charlotte." She paradoxically gently greets. "I can't believe she would treat you in such a manner."

"...you raised your voice at her." Lupus plainly states.

"Only because…"

"You also look pretty strong." A smile.

She tilts her head, "Yeah, I'm pretty decent with an…"

"Wanna wrestle later?"

"Excuse me?"

"You, me, Rinkah… wrestle." At least Lupus gets to the point.

She blinks her eyes, then smiles, "Oh, you're **that** type of person…" Her attitude shifts, "Say your prayers, because I'm gonna take you down!" She puffs her chest out turns and… "Um. Mud wrestling, right?"

"What's that?"

"You… oh. It's much better than normal." Honesty.

"Alright, mud wrestling." It's different, and Lupus is willing to try more stuff.

"That sounds even worse…" Ka-da comments after she leaves. "And next up is…"

* * *

"No no, Kana… **inside** the lines." Caeldori gently guides the young boy's hand back into the drawing. "Like that." She smiles. She has noticed that whatever Kana does, Nozzy follows, and vice versa… so if Kana or Nozzy is making a mistake, she only needs to correct one. This makes the two brothers the easiest to handle. Onyx is still sleeping in Felicia's bag, while Celestine is on her… fifth drawing?

So, what's the deal with the two that left?

"And this is."

"Called coloring?" Another, more eerie thing that Caeldori notes that Kana and Nozzy have an almost disturbing way of finishing each other's sentences.

She nods, "Yes, this is coloring."

"...too easy." Celestine speaks for the first time since getting here. "Something harder." She pushes the coloring book away.

"Okay, I'm sure Felicia has brought something… um. Onyx? Is it okay if I look inside the bag?" She asks before even trying to reach there. Whether a furry head, scaly head, or 'normal human' head pops up is completely up in the air. A yawn comes from the bag and Onyx peeks her head out… scaled. She then closes her eyes and simply lies her head on the edge of the bag. "Onyx? Is it…"

"Don't. Bad idea." Celestine speaks up. "I'll… deal with easy. Don't bother her."

"Why is that? I don't want you to feel like…"

"Onyx has." Kana.

"Really bad." Nozarmus.

"Crying." The 'bond brothers' say together.

Celestine nods, "It's… bad noise. Hurts to hear."

The door opens and while Caeldori was hoping Felicia would come through with the missing brothers, well… "I've returned with…" Mother pauses as she looks the room over. "Dear…? Where's Felicia?"

Like the honest and respectful daughter she is, Caeldori points towards the now closed window, "Sven and Si-el left through the window and miss Felicia is looking for them."

"Oh… oh no." Reina sighs, "And those are the…" She shakes her head. "Are you okay dear?"

"These four are really nice and calm. I've been keeping them busy with the coloring books miss Felicia brought!" A bright smile.

Caeldori fails to see just how smart she is.

Her mother approves, but… "I can't just leave you with four more children, though. Oh, do come in." One by one, they enter. It's easy to see who is royalty. "Everyone? This is Shiro, son of Lord Ryoma and Lady Scarlet."

Even for his age, Shiro stands taller than the rest, "What's up?"

"Kiragi, son of Lord Takumi and Oboro." Slightly shorter than Shiro, but just a tiny bit above Kana and Nozzy.

He has a small toy bow in his hands, "Hey… how's it going?"

"Hisama, son of Hinata and Rinkah." This one silently walks in, offers a single bow, then heads over to one of the corners, holding a well-carved stick to which Caeldori assumes is meant to emulate a katana.

"Lastly is… Asugi?" Reina looks around her. "Asugi? Gods… he was just…" And then **it** happened. Asugi slipped by everyone else and caused one of the worst things within Lupus's clutch to happen.

He rummaged around Felicia's bag, which agitated Onyx, and now she's crying. And… ouch. Kana and Nozzy covered their ears the second they heard Onyx sniffle. Celestine drew a blank face and bore the brunt of the wailing cry as she got closer.

The rest literally stumbled backwards at the sound, while Asugi outright fell down. "Hey, Hey! I'm sorry, I…" He tried to apologize.

"Move." Celestine pushes the boy away. "Onyx, look." She levels a gaze on Onyx. "Mama won't be happy if you cry."

"He… he…" Onyx chokes out.

"Crying is weak, weak isn't accepted." Ow, that's a harsh way of putting it, but that's how Caeldori views it…

Onyx huffs, puffs out her cheek and says, "I'm not weak."

"Then stop crying."

"I'm not crying." Despite the tears present on her face, she has indeed stopped crying.

"Why aren't you crying?"

"Because I'm strong!" And now her chest is puffed out, with a much more stern expression.

Celestine smiles, and pats her sister's head, "That's right, we're strong." A pause, "Now get out of that bag."

"...It's nice and warm in here."

Another flat look from Celestine, "We can't stay in one spot forever… do you know why?"

"Because poachers come and take." Onyx's mood drops, but she climbs out of the bag. "Change is needed, even if we don't like it." Caeldori all but gapes at the entire exchange. So many different things were present… Celestine was harsh, but Onyx took it in stride.

"Poachers? Oh, you mean those baddies who try to steal from the wildlife?" Kiragi suddenly asks, "I know about them! Daddy took out a whole group of them yesterday! He told me about it!"

Shiro crossed his arms, "After you snuck out of the castle."

"And caused a search and rescue." Hisama.

"Lord Kiragi!" Reina chides.

"Uh yeah… all that kinda happened, too." He looks away. "But, at least I got to see Daddy's super bow in action!"

"I thought there would be some candy in here…" Asugi grumbles as he moves away from the bag.

"As I was saying… Asugi, son of Saizo and Orochi." Reina finishes.

"Mother? I think there are enough of us that can at least take care of each other… if you wish to resume searching." Caeldori advises.

"Search? Who's missing… gimme name and looks and I'll track 'em down in no time!" Asugi boasts.

"...before or after you search the kitchens for sweets?" Hisama flatly asks… Asugi glares.

Reina looks at her daughter, before nodding, "Gods, you are already so responsible and…" She starts, "I'm trusting you, dear." One more look, this one spread over the whole room, "Do behave and have fun." Once more, she leaves.

"So…" Shiro leans against a wall, far more relaxed than the rest, "You four are… Princess Corrin's children?"

"Wow… Aunt Corrin has four?!" Kiragi gasps.

"Six." Caeldori corrects. "Mother and miss Felicia are trying to find two of the brothers."

"Felicia…" Shiro echoes, "Uh, Ice Tribe, right?"

"That is correct." She nods.

"Wow, you know a lot, Caeldori." Kiragi is in awe.

A very slight flush from the praise, "It's not that difficult."

"What else do you know?"

"A little of everything? I'm trying to be like Father." She looks around, "What about you all?"

Shiro shrugs, "I dunno yet, I'll worry about it later."

"I wanna learn everything there is to be an expert Sniper." Kiragi smiles.

"I like exploring…" Onyx speaks up.

"Nothing special." Celestine.

"I'll train as my father did." Hisama.

"I wanna be like Nozzy!" Kana exclaims.

"I wanna be like Kana!" Nozarmus nods.

"Alright, now how about you… Asugi?" Caeldori looks around, "Asugi?!"

"Yep… he's gone." Shiro concludes. "Didn't know Ninja training kicked in this early."

"Alright, that's… not okay, but we can work with what we have." Caeldori looks into Felicia's bag, "How about a board game?"

* * *

So far, not so bad. Kaden is heating up far too quickly, despite the 'cooling' enchant this outfit is supposed to have. The number of people is far too high, there seems to be a distinct lack of **fresh water**, and the food, oh the food…

He can smell the food from the complete opposite side of the room… it's **that** bad. It must be those 'spices' his mate told him about when she first reunited with her family.

None of this is including the social aspect of this 'ball'. Beastfolk tend to cut straight to the point, but here? The thing called 'small talk' is everywhere!

"Geez… could you be more out of place?" Hina smoothly walks up to him. Like his mate, she's also been through the 'Princess' treatment. At least she seems to take it better.

"Hey, Hina…" He slowly says.

"Aw, c'mon, that's not how you usually are!" She smiles.

"I'm being forced into a situation with little knowledge." He gestures around him, "Kitsunes don't do… **this**!"

"Heh… and you think I like this? I'd rather be spending time with my Pegasus." She crosses her arms and stands beside him. "At least let me give you some company… at the least, it'll keep other people from wanting to talk." She looks around, "Where is Lupus, anyway?"

He clicks his tongue, "Over… there." He points to an open spot on the floor, where it seems Saku is trying to keep her calm.

"And… you aren't beside her, why?"

He lets out a low growl, "We got split apart by a few **inches**, and the next thing I know, my mate is being guided one way, and I'm talking down another way. I **tried** getting back, but all of these…" he stopped himself from saying 'humans'.

"Do you think she'll be okay?"

He was about to answer, had a certain faint scent entered the air. His eyes narrow, "No… they won't be."

"Huh… they? Hold on! You can't just…"

"Si-el and Sven are **in here**." He barely manages to keep himself from yelling.

"What? No way…" a pause, "Oh… your certain."

"I know their scents." He tries to gently move through the crowd.

The key word being 'tries'.

* * *

One second, Lupus was by Ka-da's side, the next she's surrounded by nobody she knows. She doesn't like this… she holds her Dragonstone, relying on it for comfort. Unfortunately, the soothing effect does nothing for her stomach… because the smell of the 'spices' are strong enough to literally make her want to vomit.

She wants to go back to the hamlet. "Sister?" Saku walks up to her, some sort of tonic in her hands, "I… n-notice you've been holding your stomach, so…" She hands it to her, "Here, this will soothe you."

Oh, sweet relief! "Thank you, sister!" She quickly grabs it and greedily gulps it down. Within a minute, the medicine worked its 'magic' and she feels so much better.

"So… how's the ball?" She asks.

"Terrible, too many people, too many spices, too much… I want to leave." She bluntly states. "I wanna go home with Ka-da and our offspring…"

"Sister…" Saku frowns. "Would you like to go outside for a bit? Get some fresh air?"

A smile, "Yes, please."

It's a shame that, due to the spices, Lupus had no idea that two of her offspring were actually nearby…

* * *

Sven growls as he circles around a plate of pilfered food, trying to intimidate Si-el away. His Kitsune-attuned brother, on the other side, is growling just as intensely. Though, if one were to have an incredibly refined sense of hearing, they would be able to tell the small 'roaring' sound to Sven's and a small 'bark' to Si-el's. "My food." The more draconic brother firmly states.

"I take, it's mine!" The other exclaims. "I'm gonna be bigger and stronger than you, mama, and papa."

"Dragons are better."

"No way! Kitsunes are better!"

"Dragon!"

"Kitsune!"

The two brothers pounce at each other, each in their respective form, and proceed to… quite viciously, attack each other. While they won't go so far as to mortally wound the other, without Kaden or Lupus there, well…

Just be thankful that healing spells exist.

Claw, swipe, nibble… the two strike each other with their relatively underdeveloped claws and teeth. Each claiming that the stolen food will be theirs…

Each of them crying out as two separate hands grab each of them, "Ah yes, the two males…" That woman with the deep lines in her face is giving them a stern look. "I remember Kaden specifically telling me to make sure you two know who's in charge here."

"My food!" Sven hisses.

"Drop me!" Si-el flails around.

"No." She states. "You will listen to me."

"No way!"

"I don't listen to humans." A statement that Si-el soon regrets…

As this woman gives him a stare that would send even one of mama's angriest looks running. "'Humans', is it? Take yourself off of that pedestal, child. Yes, by your bloodline alone, you'll be naturally stronger and faster than us. **But**, do not think for a second that you can stand a chance against me." Si-el silences, "And you? Do you have anything else to say?"

"...No ma'am." Sven replies.

"Good, now… we are going back to the carecenter. I'm going to put you both there, and you both will **stay** there for the duration, because… by the gods, if I find out either of you escape…" She lets the threat loom over.

Sven shivers, this woman can get really scary.

* * *

"Woo! Go Shiro!" Kana and Nozarmus giggle as the son of Ryoma, surprisingly holds both him and Nozarmus on each of his shoulders.

"...Not exactly the best representation for the eldest Prince." Hisama remarks.

"Oh please, I'm glad we don't have to attend the ball… I know my father didn't look happy about it." Kiragi says.

"I have to agree with Kiragi, we should enjoy our youth while we can." Caeldori smiles at the display, while also making her next move.

"Strange, but fun." Celestine tilts her head. "We don't have these types of games."

"You don't?" Asugi asks, "Huh…"

"We do more like what brothers are doing." Onyx supplies as she slowly moves one of the pieces on this 'game'. "Running, play fighting." Her Kitsune tail pops out and it starts wagging.

"Play fighting?" Caeldori echoes, "Oh um, Onyx? Move it back a space."

To which she gives her a strange look, "I can't read."

"Wait, you can't? But, how did you…?"

"It isn't much harder than the stuff we do." Celestine smiles, "Calya, only I can read."

"Uh, Celly?" Onyx perks her head up, "Kana and Nozzy can read."

"They look at the pictures in that book." She points out, "The point is that I can read better than anyone else out of our hamlet."

Asugi and Caeldori share a look, not grasping that 'the book' the two sisters are referring to is the one that details intimate behavior. "So, Onyx… you like play fighting?"

The girl smiles, "Yes! It's alwa…" She stops and lets out a pained yelp as Shiro might have stepped on it while running around. She immediately loses all interest in the 'board game' and pounces after him.

"...Better than crying." Celestine sighs.

A light follows, and the next thing Shiro knows, he's planted on the ground with a dragon on his back. "On…"

"Yx." Kana and Nozzy pout after they land without any issue.

"He stepped on my tail!"

"Hey, woah… I didn't mean to." He quickly defends himself, then rolls over a bit, and she jumps off. "Hey, seriously… chill out, mistakes happen."

Her expression darkens, "Mistakes cost lives."

Caeldori shares a concerned look with Celestine, who seems content with reading over the rule book… again. "I like reading." The daughter of Princess Corrin says without looking up. "I've read everything except the one book with mating positions…"

Perhaps thankfully, 'mating' is one of the words that completely slips by Caeldori. She then looks over to Onyx and Shiro, who the former has already walked back over to Felicia's bag, and crawled back in. Shiro had casually shrugged it off and has picked up both Kana and Nozarmus for another shoulder ride.

Gods, compared to them, Celestine is so peaceful. "Reading is a great way to spend time."

She can spot the smallest of frowns, "We only have three books, and even those are only meant to teach reading. Alpha won't get any more books, and the last time mama brought one back…" She trails off.

It's clear that didn't go well. Wait… "Who is 'alpha'?"

"Alpha." Celestine plainly states, "Father." She shrugs as she puts the book back down, "Mother is his mate… and only one."

Shaking her head and skipping around the untaught terms, "Celestine? Would you like some more books?"

That question caused her to snap to attention and she has a wonderful smile, "Yes, please!"

"Then I'll see what I can get from mother and father for you." Caeldori nods. "Onyx? Are you going to start playing again?"

"I want **mama**!" She exclaims from Felicia's bag.

"Onyx… that's not what she asked." Celestine calls her out.

"No…" She mumbles as she dips further into the bag. "I'm done playing." Celestine takes a hefty sigh.

"But… we can't just discard your progress." Caeldori states, "It would be unfair to the rest of us and…"

"Unfair to you guys, I'm on a winning streak here!" Asugi counters.

Celestine shrugs, "We'll be fine. The only way to keep those resources would be to split them evenly between us, but that would only increase our values by the same amount, thus making such a move useless in a situation where these resources don't actually impact our survivability." The group around her hushes. "What?"

Caeldori smiles, "That is well thought out, Celestine."

"Didn't think you'd be the brains of the bunch." Asugi comments.

The offspring looks at each of them, "Can we continue playing? Any game, really…"

* * *

Vella returned to the 'ball' with a fresh and much more positive outlook… after jumping in a lake, proceeding to hunt down some treasure while she was still wet, and then killing a deer for good measure. The first thing she does when she returns is track down her sister, but instead of bumping into Lupus first, she ends up spotting Si-el and Sven, who are both being carried by some woman. "Vella!" Sven calls her out.

"Ignore them, they both escaped from their care center and proceeded to steal food from the dining rooms." The scarred face woman supplies.

"We're hungry!" Si-el gripes. "We want meat!"

"You can wait until…"

"How about a bear?" Vella asks, getting a disapproving look from this random woman holding **her** pups… well, her sister's offspring, but as far as she's concerned, "I'll take care of them." She sniffs.

"Lady Vella, you are supposed to be at the ball." Who **is** she?

A moment passes, "Sven? Si-el? With me. Let's go hunting." Vella turns away and starts walking and with the promise of fresh meat?

Two flashes of light and the two males quickly and literally claw their way to freedom, leaving a number of wounds on this scarred woman's arm. "Vella's getting a bear!"

"Oh no… **we're** hunting a bear." Vella sternly corrects them, "You two are going to learn some things today." Far more important things than whatever this 'ball' has to offer.

* * *

Kaden, while following the scent trail of the two 'pure-blooded' males, stops mid-turn as another woman dashes past… before falling straight onto the floor. "Oh… hello!" She greets as she gets up, "Don't mind… um?" She tilts her head.

Familiarity? "Yes?"

"Oh… it's just you look like… um. Are you, by chance… Si-el's father?"

"I am." He already doesn't like where this is going, "And you are?"

"Um… the, uh… one of the caretakers?" She nervously finishes.

"And you lost sight of my offspring."

"I didn't know they would be able to claw open a window!" She defends. "I'm so sorry, I promise by the end of the day, they will…"

"Ah, Lord Kaden." Reina walks up to him, "Lord Si-el and Lord Sven are safe…" He notes the recently wrapped arms, tinged with blood. "...in Madame Velouria's care." She adds.

Kaden sighs, "At least I know she'll be able to take care of them."

"Lord Kaden… she's taking them to hunt a bear." She flatly points out, "Specifically helping them, not hunting the bear for them."

"A-A Bear?!" The caretaker squeaks out. "Gods, we…"

"They'll be fine." Kaden cuts her off, "Vella is well aware of what would happen if they got hurt… and I trust her with mine." He takes a moment to glare at the caretaker. "You need work…" A calmer look at Reina, "Taking their scent on you… you did well." He looks her over, "You're scratched, but still standing strong… well that, and they didn't relieve themselves on you."

"But…"

"Thank you, Lord Kaden."

With that said, he starts walking, "Now I need to return to my mate…"

* * *

Lupus takes a breath as her stomach finally settles down. That was a rough experience, way too many spices, too many people. But… at least a few hours have passed, so only a few more left? "I just wanna go back to the hamlet…" She gripes.

"Sister? The dance is about to start." Red walks up to her.

"Dance?! What dance? No wait… what **is** dance?" She immediately replies.

"...We told you about it along the way. You've had a few practice sessions with some of our teachers, remember?"

"I did?"

"This was after you were washed."

Lupus blinks her eyes, completely lost. "Brother…?"

Red sighs, "Come on in, at least watch the first round, maybe you'll pick up on the rest."

"Okay…" regardless, she follows her brother back into the main area. Whew… at least that spiced food isn't here now. "So…" Lupus looks towards to now open center, well… except for the few couples who are tapping around like something is biting them. "Can I go and check up on my offspring now?"

Red chuckles, "They are fine, sister… just get ready."

"What about Ka-da?"

"I'm… sure he had to just step out for a bit." He slowly responds.

"Vella?"

"She left." Ka-da! The Kitsune walks up, with Kaze beside him. "Si-el and Sven are with her."

"Where did she go?"

"Forest, hunting a bear with those two." He shrugs.

Right… Vella is literally the only person he'd trust his offspring with. "Okay." Lupus nods. "Oh… it's time for the 'dance' to start."

"Oh, right." His tail wags, "You ready?"

"Uh, no…"

"You already forgot the motions?"

"And you remember them."

"One is better than none…" Red mutters. "Sister, you can follow Kaden's movements."

"And… what's after the dance?" Lupus asks.

"The feast."

"And after the feast?"

"There will be free time set aside for all. After that, the goodbyes will be sent out." Red finishes.

"C'mon!" Ka-da, surprisingly enough, pulls her along, "This will be fun."

"Hey… hey!" Lupus lets herself be brought along, "Ka-da~!" What's gotten into him?!

"Alright, so… just mirror me, okay?" Ka-da smiles… why is he so into this? It surely doesn't help he literally took 'center spot'. "'Sides, you trust me."

Thump thump, thump thump, thump thump. Lupus's heartbeat goes up… this is such a 'human' moment, but Ka-da seems as confident in this as he is with the 'beastfolk' stuff. Lupus smiles, a flush forming, then nods, "I do… and while we're also just mates… I also love you." She rubs his furred hands, "Alright, so… lead me."

"Sweet! So, first off we go like this…" Lupus eyes him as his movements start up… considerably more smoothly when compared to everyone else here. "And here…" He moves her arm so that it's wrapped around his side, "like this… hey, you listening?"

"...huh?" Lupus breathes in, "Sorry… I'm like… lost?" In him, specifically. "You smell really nice… like better than normal." She takes a deep breath of his fur, "I like it." Without any warning, her draconic tail pops out and it starts wagging…

Which ends up causing the unfortunate couple behind her to stumble and fall. She shrugs, oh well. "Mate…" Ka-da whispers. "Your tail…"

"Yeah?" She tilts her head, "You know it pops out when I'm really happy."

He chuckles, "I know, just try to remember we're not alone out here."

She looks around, then smiles, "As far as I'm concerned, we're most certainly alone." Her eyes light up. "Ka-da? I really like this… I kinda wish I paid more attention to the 'dancing' part." She squeaks as he brings her in for some sort of spin.

"...oh, I know." His voice drops a bit… slightly husky. "I suppose we can do this back at the hamlet every now and then."

"I'd like that."

He leans in, "And I like how quick your scent is rising…" A growl leaves him.

Lupus lightly giggles, "Remember Ka-da… we aren't alone." She mocks his works.

"And I'd rather us be alone for this."

"Do you think we can teach our offspring to dance?" Without any warning, Ka-da lets Lupus almost fall backwards…

But he leans forward so now that his face is very close to hers. "Perhaps." And then he kisses her.

Lupus comically gives up on holding by that point, which does cause her to hit the floor, but she didn't care… her heart is already racing so fast and her human side has been completely filled with so much satisfaction. "I love you, Ka-da." She manages to get out.

Ka-da smiles, then helps her up. "I love you, too." He pulls her close, "Ready for another?"

This close?! Lupus is already close enough to passing out, but… oh his scent. "O-okay."

* * *

By the time Felicia and Reina had **finally** returned to the daycare, they came to see a scene of very content children. Shiro, Kiragi, Kana, and Nozarmus are completely worn out from whatever they had been doing and are now resting. Kana, in his dragon form and Nozarmus, in his Kitsune form are almost… uncomfortably close together, as in they are actively cuddling each other, Nozarmus's back is against Kana's chest, with Kana's arms wrapped around Nozarmus's front, and Nozarmus's tail… in between Kana's legs. Shiro and Kiragi have a much more respectable distance between the rest, though it is adorable to see Kiragi still weakly holding onto his toy Yumi, even in his sleep. Asugi is chatting with Onyx, as well as… sharing candy? Hisama is in the far corner, simply taking watch over the room. Lastly, Caeldori and Celestine are taking turns reading from a **book**, almost shoulder to shoulder.

"Well, I suppose it all worked out in the end." Reina comments…

Then was surprised that even the sound of her voice wasn't enough to snap her daughter out of her time being spent with Celestine. Oh, it seems like Caeldori made not just a friend, but a best friend. "Oh… I just wish I didn't screw up." Felicia berates herself, "Should've listened to my sister…"

"You came more prepared then I did, Felicia." Reina states, "Don't forget that they played with the things you brought."

"But… none of it is out."

Reina laughs, "My dear daughter would've put them back into their places."

That laughter finally caused the two to be noticed. "Mother!" Caeldori smiles. "Lookie, Celestine enjoys reading!" A short pause, "And thank you, miss Felicia! Celestine and I placed everything back into their original spots."

"Caela said I could ask for some books to take home… is that okay?" Celestine asks, with wide eyes.

"Welcome back, ma'ams." Hisama simply greets.

Asugi scrambles to 'hide' the candy out for the room to see, "Uh, heya, miss Reina!"

"Aw, I wanted some more…" Onyx gripes.

The rest, of course, are asleep. Reina raises an eyebrow at Felicia. "Well, um… I hope you all had a good time!" Oh… it's clear she's hurt from not being able to actually spend time with them. She truly loves children then.

"Felicia?" She asks.

"Yes, miss Reina?"

"While I do understand your position as the chieftain's daughter… if you do wish to, I'm sure I can arrange a position for you to have as a caretaker here."

Felicia gasps, "Oh, I'd love that! Um… Let me inform my father, first." She moves to leave, so excited that she can't even wait, "Trust me, you won't regret this choice!" And the first thing Reina hears after Felicia rounds a corner?

A crash… glass, specifically. "As for your question, Lady Celestine. Yes, there are some books that I can part with."

The hybrid's face lights up, "And I'll be sure to take excellent care of them."

* * *

"Whew, thank the gods we slipped out…" Charlotte breathes a sigh of relief as she, Rinkah, and Lady Corrin… erm, Lupus exit the main building and go out into the open.

Rinkah scoffs, "Yeah, I've got a lot of pent up energy, and this ball isn't fixing that."

Lupus looks at the area not so far in front of them… a lot of dirt and mud. "Fast and rough playtime does sound a lot better right now." Now that she isn't being… stimulated by Ka-da and dance.

"So, Lupus… you ever wrestled?" Without a hint of care, Charlotte steps out of her dress… leaving nothing but a bra and panties to cover her body.

"I did, even though I didn't know that that kind of playtime had a specific name." Lupus eagerly removes her clothing, but unlike Rinkah or Charlotte, Lupus doesn't like the underclothes…

So, she's completely naked.

And while it catches them off-guard at first, the two surprisingly end up shrugging it off. "Don't get a lot of rain in the Fire Tribe, so we don't have a lot of mud." Rinkah is also down to a bra and panty. "But I do know wrestling."

"So, this is wrestling, but just done with mud?" Lupus asks as they get into the 'ring'.

"Pretty much."

Lupus smiles, "Alright, let's do it!"

* * *

"Good job." Vella comments as a massive bear was brought down, and most of it has been eaten. Whew, Si-el and Sven were hungry.

"Mine…"

"Mine!" The two 'alphas' bicker.

Vella growls, causing the two to stop, "By all rights, this bear is **mine**. If you two don't behave and eat, then you won't get anymore… got it?"

"Yes, Vella." The two echo each other, before quietly returning to eating.

"Good." Well, at least Vella isn't a part of that ball. She can only imagine how much sister is having to deal with… and Ka-da. Still, part of her wishes she stayed, if only to be with her family. But, of course, Vella also has a fair amount of blood on her, and it did take those women **hours** to clean Vella out through and through and…

"Vella?" Si-el nudges her side, which causes a pained grunt to sound out. Alright, maybe she did get hit by the bear harder than she initially thought.

"Blood." Sven states, concerned.

"Yes, I can smell that." Vella says, "I'll just…" Then Sven growls at her, and while Vella was just about to snap at him for doing that, she realized that it wasn't a 'dominance' growl. Sven reaches out with his hand, which is currently scaled, and hovers over the claw wound. A few seconds pass and **healing** magic goes from him to her…

Wait, Sven can heal? Since when?! "Better." It wasn't a question.

"Sven?" Vella asks.

"Best alphas know to handle all." He slowly says. "Learning magic."

Magic, probably the worst weakness to any Wolfskin, but… their father is Kitsune, and Kitsunes… more importantly, Nine-Tails are highly attuned to magic. Lupus, while she doesn't use magic directly, does apply magic with her dragon abilities. So, with all of that in mind, it shouldn't be a surprise that Ka-da's and Lupus's offspring can access magic easily.

They probably wouldn't be able to do that if Keaty was the alpha.

Still, Vella shouldn't gotten struck in the first place, but… the security of the offsprings' lives is incredibly important, so she was willing to take a hit… because she can, they can't.

"Oof." Si-el leans back.

Sven took one more bite. "Full."

Well, they are still young, after all. "Let me finish eating, and we'll go back." Vella states.

* * *

"Hey, uh… Kaden?" Hina asks the hamlet leader.

"Outside, left with Rinkah and Charlotte." He answers. "Uh… 'mud wrestling'."

"Wait, seriously? We're not… ugh." Hina takes a breath to keep her composure. "Will she at least be back before this is all over?"

"Doubt it, she'll probably want to play until she's worn out." A look of dread crosses Hina's face, because she knows just how long that might end up taking. "You could always join her."

"What? No way… Kaden, we're still royalty, I can't just abandon my duties for fun."

"She likes you, Hina. I'm sure she'd appreciate having another person to play with."

"Kaden, I'm not…"

He smirks… Kaden **smirks**, "Hina? If you go out there and play with Lupus, I'll allow Onyx to stay for several extra days so you can spend some extra time with her." Oof, low blow.

See, because Onyx smells 'spicy' and Hina smells 'spicy', Onyx ended up becoming quickly attached to Hina, and as such, the two have developed quite quickly as… "Aw, come on! That's not fair at all!" Hina gripes.

"Going once…"

"Fine, I'll do it." She finally agrees, "Just… cover for me, alright? I don't want mother to get mad."

"Alright." He shrugs as Hina starts weaving her way out, and no more than about ten minutes later…

"Kaden." Red firmly states. "I've been looking for my sisters, I can find Sakura, but…"

"I'm not sure, the spices from the feast are keeping me from tracking just about anyone." He smoothly lies.

"Oh… very well, then." Disappointment crosses Red's expression, but there's no sign of disbelief. "Well, if you do happen to see either of them, do inform them to come to either mother or me, there's an event that requires all of us."

"Understood." With that, Red walks off…

And Kaden makes no attempt on rounding up the females.

* * *

Hinoka should've asked Kaden **where** Lupus was 'outside', as by the time Hinoka left the city… on the back of her Pegasus, of course, and flew around for a bit, she realized a good chunk of the day would've past if she simply walked. And where did she find her? Well, the scene goes like this…

Hinoka and her Pegasus lands to see a completely mud-drenched Lupus laughing out loud as she pinned down Charlotte, but Rinkah tackled Lupus to pin her down, and Charlotte joined in… then, out of nowhere, Vella runs in and tackled Rinkah, only for Rinkah to grab and throw Vella across the **entire** mud-field. Lupus took that chance to flip Charlotte off of her and pin down Rinkah.

Oh yeah, both Vella and Lupus are totally naked. Rinkah's bra has been torn off, while Charlotte's… undergarments are in danger of falling off. So, Hinoka does what every tomboyish Princess would do in a situation like this…

She discarded down to her bra and undergarments, then joined in!

* * *

A still-sleepy Kana and Nozarmus are yawning as they are being guided by Celestine and Onyx, who are also being lead with the rest of the children, over towards the main area. Apparently the ball has ended and it's time to go home. "Fun… Shiro." Kana says.

"Play again!" Nozarmus pauses… "Another time, still… sleepy."

Unlike those two, however, Shiro is wide awake, "Heh, you bet! You two are a blast!"

"A…"

"Blast?" The bond brothers share a look.

"He means you two are a lot of fun." Caeldori clarifies.

The two flash sleepy smiles, "You too!" They exclaim in unison.

"Yeah! That was like, the best time I ever had in my life! You guys are awesome!" Kiragi exclaims.

"Celestine? Father will have the books properly packed by the time you all are ready to go." Caeldori states with a hint of sadness, "I really enjoyed our time together."

Celestine nods, "I did, too… hopefully… soon again." She smiles.

"Asugi? Good candy… spicy next time?" Onyx asks.

"Uh… no. Why would you want spicy candy?" Onyx soon pouts afterwards, "Alright fine… I'll see if I can… 'acquire' some spicy candy for you, and just for you." She smiles. "Whew… avoided another crying session."

If only he knew she was faking that, because Onyx is well aware of how 'feared' her crying is.

* * *

**A/N:** Well then… that went pretty well, overall. I absolutely **adored** the child unit sections and, well… By the gods, the dancing bit between Lupus and Ka-da… *squeaks internally*. Erm, now then…

I do hope y'all enjoyed it. I think I'm done with the ball stuff, despite rarely touching the more noble things, but… eh.


End file.
